"X      x 


GEORGE  AT  THE  WHEEL; 

OR, 

LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE. 


GEORGE  AT  THE  WHEEL. 


ROUGHING  IT  SERIES. 


GEORGE  AT  THE  WHEEL: 


OB, 


LIFE  IN  THE  PILOT-HOUSE. 


BY  HARRY   CASTLEMON, 

,AUTHOR  OF  "  THE  GUNBOAT  SERIES,"  "  THE  FRANK  NELSON  SERIES,"  "  THE  BOX 
TKAPPER  SERIES,"  1C. 


PHILADELPHIA  : 
PORTER    &    COATES, 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1881,  bjr 

PORTER  &  COATES, 
in  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 
Uncle  John  and  Ned •      Page  7 

CHAPTER  II. 
A  Surprise 21 

CHAPTER  III. 
The  Contra-Guerrillas      . 36 

CHAPTER  IV. 

More  about  Silk  Stocking 54 

CHAPTER  V. 
"  Hold  up  there,  Silver  Buttons !"    .  ...      72 

CHAPTER  VI. 
George  proves  an  alibi      . .91 

CHAPTER  VII. 

A.  stormy  interview 108 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Life  in  the  Pilot-House 127 

CHAPTER  IX. 
The  Pilot's  gratituie 145 

CHAPTER  X. 
Tony  Richardson 165 

(v) 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XI. 
Down  the  river  on  a  Coal-Barge       ...  .    1ST 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Tony  finds  a  friend  .        .        .        .        .        .  .210 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
On  board  the  Princeton  .        . . 225 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
Tony  makes  another  break       ......  257 

CHAPTER  XV. 
An  old  acquaintance 263 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Walker  diseDvers  something 291 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
The  Key  of  the  Safe      ..."..  .       313 

,     CHAPTER  XVIII. 
Conclusion      ...  •        •        .        .       341 


GEOKGE  AT  THE  WHEEL; 


OR, 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

UNCLE   JOHN   AND    NED. 

"VY7~ELL,  Ned,  I  must  say,  that  you  have  had 
some  narrow  escapes.  Have  you  seen  any- 
thing of  those  ranchemen  lately  ?  I  mean  the  one 
who  owns  the  stolen  horse  and  his  companion  ?" 

"  No,  sir;  and  I  don't  want  to  see  them,  either. 
It  is  true  that  they  might  not  recognise  me  in  these 
clothes,  for  every  time  they  described  me,  they 
spoke  of  my  buckskin  coat  and  silver  buttons ;  but 
I  have  no  desire  to  run  the  risk!" 

"  You  say  you  haven't  seen  Gus  Robbins  since 
the  day  you  reached  town.  Where  do  you  suppose 

he  is?" 

(vii) 


8  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

"  I  haven't  the  least  idea.  All  I  know  is,  that 
he  has  not  gone  home.  He  got  angry  at  some  little 
thing  I  said,  and  left  without  bidding  me  good-by. 
But  I  say,  father,  I  don't  want  to  stay  here  any 
longer.  I  shall  not  feel  safe  until  I  am  miles  away 
from  Texas!" 

"  Well,  where  do  you  want  to  go,  and  what  do 
you  want  to  do?" 

"  I  don't  know ;  I  haven't  thought  about  it. 
George  and  I  talked  of  going  up  to  the  head-waters 
of  the  Mississippi,  and  coming  back  in  a  canoe.  I 
should  have  enjoyed  such  a  trip,  but  George  had 
to  go  and  get  himself  captured  by  those  Greasers, 
and  of  course  that  put  an  end  to  that  scheme." 

"  If  Gus  Robbins  were  here  he  might  go  with 
you.  I  suppose  you  wouldn't  care  to  go  back  to 
Foxboro'  under  the  existing  circumstances  ?" 

"  No  sir,  I  should  not.  All  the  folks  there  know 
that  Gus  ran  away  from  home  and  came  down  here 
to  visit  us,  and  they  would  have  too  much  to  say 
about  it.  We  couldn't  call  on  Mr.  Robbins,  of 
course.  He  is  perfectly  well  aware  of  the  fact  that 
I  sent  Gus  the  money  to  defray  the  expenses  of  his 
journey,  and  he'd  give  us  the  cold  shoulder  at  once. 
But,  father,  what  do  ypu  suppose  those  Greasers 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  9 

wanted  of  George  ?  What  did  they  intend  to  do 
with  him  after  they  had  taken  him  across  the  river?" 

"  I  am  sure  I  don't  know.  I  am  sorry  that  Gus 
left  you  as  he  did,  for  there  is  no  knowing  what  will 
become  of  him." 

"What  will  the  neighbors  say  when  they  learn 
that  George  is  gone,  and  that  you  made  no  effort  to 
find  him  ?  Won't  they  suspect  something  ?" 

"  I  can't  help  it  if  they  do.  If  there  is  anything 
done  about  it,  Mr.  Gilbert  must  be  the  one  to  do  it ; 
for  of  course  I  can't  go  back  there  until  those 
ranchemen  and  Mr.  Cook  are  satisfied.  Now,  make 
up  your  mind  where  you  want  to  go,  and  we  will 
leave  Brownsville  to-night." 

Uncle  John  Ackerman  and  his  son  Ned  had 
been  closeted  in  their  room  at  the  hotel  for  the  last 
hour,  talking  over  the  exciting  events  that  had  hap- 
pened since  the  latter  left  home.  The  boy,  as  we 
have  already  said,  told  a  truthful  story,  but  his 
father  had  very  little  to  tell  him  in  return.  He  did 
not  want  to  talk  about  George,  and  every  time 
Ned  made  inquiries  concerning  him,  Uncle  John 
answered  his  questions  in  as  few  words  as  he  could, 
and  made  all  haste  to  turn  the  conversation  into 
another  channel,  He  seemed  to  grow  nervous  and 


10  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

excited  every  time  his  nephew's  name  was  men- 
tioned ;  and  this,  taken  in  connection  with  his 
anxiety  to  avoid  all  allusion  to  him,  which  was 
much  too  palpable  to  escape  Ned's  notice,  made  the 
latter  believe  that  his  father  knew  more  about 
George's  capture  than  he  was  willing  to  reveal. 

"  He  is  keeping  something  from  me,"  said  Ned, 
to  himself,  over  and  over  again ;  and  the  longer  the 
interview  continued,  the  firmer  became  his  convic- 
tions on  this  point.  He  brought  his  cousin's  name 
in  at  every  opportunity,  but  could  neither  surprise 
nor  coax  his  father  into  saying  more  than  he  had 
already  said,  viz :  That  he  knew  nothing  whatever 
of  the  object  the  Mexicans  had  in  view,  when  they 
captured  George;  and  could  not  even  guess  what 
they  intended  to  do  with  him.  Those  who  have 
read  the  preceding  volume  of  this  series,  know  the 
statement  to  be  false;  and  to  enable  those  who  have 
not  read  it  to  follow  this  story  understandingly,  we 
will  spend  a  few  moments  upon  the  missing  boy's 
past  history. 

George  Ackerman,  our  hero,  was  born,  and  had 
spent  the  most  of  his  life  on  his  father's  cattle 
ranche,  which  was  located  a  few  days'  journey  from 
one  of  the  small  frontier  towns  of  Texas.  When  he 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  11 

was  about  thirteen  years  of  age  his  father  died, 
leaving  his  immense  property  in  trust  to  his  only 
brother,  John  Ackerman,  who  was  named  as 
George's  guardian.  Uncle  John  came  to  Texas 
at  once,  bringing  with  him  his  son,  Ned ;  who,  by 
the  terms  of  the  will  left  by  George's  father,  was 
to  be  the  heir  to  the  property  in  case  his  cousin  did 
not  live  to  reach  his  majority.  That  provision  of 
the  will,  was  a  most  unfortunate  one  for  George,  for 
it  was  the  means  of  bringing  him  into  a  great  deal 
of  trouble. 

Uncle  John  was  a  poor  man  up  to  this  time,  and 
had  been  obliged  to  work  hard  for  his  living.  He 
held  the  position  of  book-keeper  in  a  dry- goods 
store  in  the  town  in  which  he  lived,  and  Ned  was 
clerk  in  the  same  store.  The  latter  was  anything 
in  the  world  but  an  industrious  boy,  and  when  he 
learned  that  his  father  was  to  have  the  entire  man- 
agement and  control  of  an  estate  worth  forty  thou- 
sand dollars  a  year,  his  astonishment  and  delight 
knew  no  bounds. 

For  awhile,  Ned  enjoyed  the  life  of  ease  he  led 
in  his  new  home.  The  first  thought  that  came  into 
his  mind  when  he  awoke  in  the  morning  was,  that 
during  the  whole  of  the  long  day  before  him,  he 


12  GEORGE   AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

need  not  turn  his  hand  to  labor  of  any  kind.  There 
were  a  good  many  servants  about  the  ranche  who 
were  paid  to  work ;  and  it  was  not  even  necessary 
that  Ned  should  black  his  own  boots  or  saddle  his 
horse.  He  had  nothing  to  do  but  enjoy  himself. 
This  was  a  glorious  way  to  live,  and  Ned  told  him- 
self that  he  should  never  grow  tired  of  it.  But  he 
did;  and  he  even  learned  to  hate  his  life  of  inactivity 
and  uselessness,  as  cordially  as  he  had  hated  the 
life  he  led  in  the  dry-goods  store  in  Foxboro'. 
There  was  literally  nothing  he  could  do  but  ride  on 
horseback,  and  Ned  had  found  by  experience,  that 
that  was  hard  work.  There  was  nothing  to  be  seen 
on  the  ranche;  there  was  not  a  house  in  sight; 
no  boys  with  whom  he  could  associate;  no  books 
in  the  small,  well-selected  library  that  he  cared 
to  read;  and  the  hours  hung  heavily  on  his, 
hands. 

To  make  matters  worse,  Ned  learned  that  the 
other  boys  in  the  neighborhood,  were  not  as  lonely 
as  he  was ;  that  they  visited  one  another  regularly ; 
had  hunting  parties  and  barbecues,  and  were  never 
at  a  loss  to  know  how  to  pass  the  time  in  an  agree- 
able manner.  But  they  never  asked  Ned  to  join 
them.  They  slighted  him  on  every  occasion,  just 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  13 

as  their  fathers  and  older  brothers  slighted  Uncle 
John. 

Nobody  in  that  country  liked  the  new-comers,  and 
the  reason  was,  because  they  would  not  work.  The 
settlers,  who  were  always  busy  at  something,  did 
not  believe  that  people  could  spend  their  lives  in 
doing  nothing.  Their  creed  was,  that  every  man 
and  boy  must  pass  the  time  in  some  way ;  and  if 
they  did  not  devote  it  to  some  honest  occupation, 
they  would  spend  it  in  doing  something  dishonest. 
So,  when  they  found  that  Uncle  John  and  his  son 
held  aloof  from  work  and  dressed  in  the  height  of 
fashion,  they  became  suspicious  of  them  at  once. 
There  was  only  one  class  of  men  in  that  country 
who  lived  and  dressed  in  that  way,  and  they  were 
rogues,  every  one  of  them. 

•  Ned,  being  left  entirely  to  himself,  passed  a  most 
dismal  winter.  He  never  went  out  of  sight  of  the 
house  but  once,  and  then  he  spent  a  few  days  with 
his  cousin  in  camp,  in  the  hope  of  finding  an  oppor- 
tunity to  try  his  rifle  on  some  of  the  big  game  with 
which  he  had  heard  the  plains  were  so  well  stocked; 
but  he  was  caught  out  in  a  "  norther,"  and  so  nearly 
frozen,  that  it  was  a  long  time  before  he  could  get 


14  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

thawed  out  again.  He  saw  no  game,  and  was  glad 
to  get  back  to  the  rancho. 

When  his  cousin  told  him  why  it  was  that  the 
boys  in  the  settlement  would  have  nothing  fo  do 
with  him,  Ned  made  a  feeble  effort  to  show  that  he 
had  something  in  him,  and  that  he  was  capable  of 
making  an  honest  living.  He  fenced  in  fifty  acres 
of  land  and  planted  it  to  wheat — or,  rather,  he  sat 
on  his  horse  and  watched  his  father's  hired  men 
while  they  did  the  work.  While  he  was  wondering 
how  he  should  pass  the  long  months  that  must 
elapse  before  his  crop  would  be  ready  for  the  reap- 
ers, a  bright  idea  occurred  to  him,  and  he  lost  no 
time  in  carrying  it  out. 

Among  the  clerks  belonging  to  the  store  in  Fox- 
boro'  in  which  he  had  formerly  been  employed  was 
a  young  fellow,  Gus  Robbins  by  name,  the  son  of 
the  senior  partner,  with  whom  he  had  once  been  on 
terms  of  the  closest  intimacy.  Gus  had  faithfully 
promised  to  visit  Ned  in  his  Texas  home,  and  while 
he  was  thinking  about  him,  and  the  agreeable 
change  his  presence  would  make  in  the  gloomy  old 
rancho,  it  suddenly  occurred  to  him  that  it  was 
quite  possible  he  could  bring  him  there.  He  wrote 
to  Gus  at  once,  and  was  almost  ready  to  dance  with 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  15 

delight  when  he  received  a  letter  in  reply  stating 
that  his  friend  would  be  only  too  glad  to  visit 
Texas,  and  that  want  of  money  was  the  only  thing 
that  prevented  him  from  so  doing.  Ned  promptly 
sent  him  a  hundred  dollars,  urging  him  to  come  on 
at  once,  and  then  settled  back  into  his  old  aimless 
life  again.  But  it  was  not  as  gloomy  as  it  had 
been,  for  he  had  something  to  occupy  his  mind. 
He  laid  out  numerous  plans  for  the  amusement  of 
his  expected  friend,  and  promised  himself  some 
exciting  times  when  he  arrived.  But,  as  it  hap- 
pened, the  exciting  times  began  before  Gus  arrived, 
and  Ned  was  the  hero  of  a  series  of  adventures  that 
astonished  everybody  who  heard  of  them.  The 
incident  that  led  to  some  of  these  adventures  was  so 
simple  a  thing  as  trading  horses. 

It  was  Ned's  custom  to  ride  every  day  to  the  top 
of  a  high  swell,  about  five  miles  from  home,  and 
there  stake  out  his  horse  and  lie  down  on  his 
blanket  to  watch  the  trail  along  which  his  expected 
friend  Gus  would  have  to  pass  in  order  the  reach 
the  rancho.  One  day  he  encountered  on  the  top 
of  this  swell  a  flashily-dressed  and  splendidly- 
mounted  stranger,  who  astonished  Ned  by  offering 
to  trade  horses  with  him.  The  offer  was  promptly 


16  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

accepted,  and  the  stranger  rode  hastily  away,  leav- 
ing Ned  holding  by  the  bridle  the  handsomest  horse 
he  had  ever  seen.  The  animal  proved  to  be  just 
as  good  as  he  looked,  and  Ned  was  delighted  with 
the  way  he  behaved  under  the  saddle — so  delighted, 
in  fact,  that  he  was  willing  to  run  a  serious  risk  :n 
order  to  keep  him.  He  began  to  suspect,  after  a 
while,  that  the  horse  had  been  stolen,  so  he  said 
nothing  to  his  father  about  the  trade  he  had  made. 
His  suspicions  proved  to  be  well-founded,  for  that 
same  night  a  couple  of  men  came  along  looking  for 
this  same  horse,  which  they  called  Silk  Stocking. 
Ned  heard  them  describe  the  animal,  but  he  did  not 
surrender  him.  as  he  ought  to  have  done,  for  the 
appearance  of  the  two  men,  who  were  armed  to  the 
teeth,  frightened  him,  and  he  was  afraid  that  if  he 
acknowledged  he  had  the  horse  in  his  possession, 
they  would  do  him  some  serious  injury.  He  knew 
that  the  men  lived  a  long  distance  away,  and  he 
hoped  that  they  would  go  back  to  their  own  settle- 
ment and  stay  there;  so  he  resolved  to  keep  the 
horse,  although  his  resolution  did  not  amount  to 
much,  for  that  very  night  he  lost  him.  A  band  of 
Mexicans,  led  by  renegade  Americans,  who  lived  on 
the  other  side  of  the  Rio  Grande  and  gained  a 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  17 

livelihood  by  stealing  cattle  from  the  Texas  farmers 
and  ranchemen,  made  a  descent  upon  the  rancho. 
They  came  after  the  strong  box  which  Uncle  John 
kept  in  the  office,  and  which  one  of  their  spies  had 
told  them  was  filled  with  gold  and  silver. 

The  appearance  of  the  attacking  party  was  en- 
tirely unexpected  and  so  sudden  that  Ned,  who 
happened  to  be  under  the  shed  in  which  he  had 
hitched  his  new  horse,  did  not  have  time  to  run 
into  the  house.  He  concealed  himself  in  the  man- 
ger, from  which  he  could  obtain  a  fair  view  of  the 
yard  and  see  every  move  the  raiders  made.  He 
was  greatly  astonished  to  discover  that  they  were 
met  at  the  porch  by  one  of  the  servants,  who  seemed 
to  be  waiting  for  them,  and  who  gave  them  instruc- 
tions in  regard  to  their  future  movements.  This 
servant's  name  was  Philip,  and  he  was  Uncle  John's 
cook.  He  had  left  one  of  the  doors  open,  and 
through  it  the  raiders  entered  the  rancho  without 
opposition ;  but  they  had  scarcely  crossed  the 
threshold  when  they  were  discovered,  and  a  fierce 
battle  ensued  between  them  and  the  herdsmen,  in 
which  the  robbers  got  the  worst  of  it. 

Being  driven  out  of  the  house,  the  raiders  con- 
cealed themselves  behind  wagons  and  lumber  piles 


18  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

and  opened  fire  on  the  herdsmen,  which  the  latter 
returned  with  their  revolvers.  One  of  them  ran 
into  the  shed  and  took  refuge  in  the  very  manger 
in  which  Ned  was  concealed ;  but  he  was  quickly 
routed  by  some  sharpshooter  in  the  rancho,  who  sent 
his  bullets  crashing  through  the  planks  altogether 
too  close  to  Ned's  head  for  comfort.  The  robbers 
were  finally  obliged  to  mount  and  ride  away  without 
accomplishing  their  object,  and  Ned's  new  horse 
went  with  them.  The  boy  had  released  the  animal 
when  the  raiders  first  made  their  appearance,  for 
fear  that  by  his  neighing  he  would  lead  some  of  the 
band  to  his  place  of  concealment.  He  was  glad  to 
see  him  go,  and  hoped  from  the  bottom  of  his  heart 
that  he  had  seen  and  heard  the  last  of  him.  He 
had  seen  the  last  of  him,  but  he  was  destined  to 
hear  a  good  deal  more  concerning  him.  That  same 
horse  afterward  came  pretty  near  getting  George 
Ackerman  into  trouble,  and  how  it  happened  shall 
be  told  in  its  proper  place. 

A  few  days  after  this  the  long-expected  visitor 
made  his  appearance.  He  was  met  at  Palos — that 
was  the  name  of  the  nearest  settlement — by  one  of 
Uncle  John's  herdsmen,  who  showed  him  the  way 
to  the  rancho.  He  had  left  home  without  his 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  19 

father's  knowledge,  thus  adding  another  to  the  list 
of  runaways  whose  adventures  are  to  be  described 
in  this  series  of  books.  Ned  met  him  on  the  top 
of  the  swell  before  spoken  of,  and  the  two  rode 
homeward,  talking  over  old  times,  and  dwelling 
with  a  good  deal  of  pride  and.  enthusiasm  upon  the 
numerous  "scrapes"  in  which  they  had  been  en- 
gaged in  Foxboro'.  Gus  seemed  eager  to  appear 
as  the  hero  of  new  ones,  and  Ned  promised  him 
that  his  ambition  should  be  fully  gratified.  And 
he  kept  his  promise. 

A  few  days  afterward,  the  two  boys  rode  over  to 
look  at  Ned's  wheat  field,  and  found  the  fence 
broken  down,  the  crop  entirely  ruined,  and  the  en- 
closure in  the  possession  of  a  small  herd  of  half- 
wild  cattle,  which  acted  as  if  they  were  fully  sen- 
sible of  the  mischief  they  had  done  and  were  elated 
over  it.  Here  was  a  chance  for  Gus  to  get  himself 
into  business,  and  he  did  it  by  shooting  down  one  of 
the  herd,  Ned  following  his  example  by  severely 
wounding  another.  Then  they  drove  the  herd  out 
of  the  field  and  rode  gaily  homeward,  all  uncon- 
scious of  the  fact  that  the  owner  of  the  cattle,  Mr. 
Cook,  had  been  looking  at  them  over  the  top  of  a 
neighboring  ridge,  watching  their  every  movement. 


20  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

Ned  knew  better  than  to  do  this,  lie  knew,  for 
his  cousin  George  had  told  him  so,  that  such  an  act 
as  he  had  just  performed  had  once  set  the  whole 
settlement  in  an  uproar,  and  brought  about  a  reign 
of  terror,  the  like  of  which  nobody  there  wanted  to 
see  again. 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  21 


CHAPTER  II. 

A   SURPRISE. 

settlement  in  which  Uncle  John  and  Ned 
lived  was  composed  of  two  classes  of  men,  the 
farmers  and  the  ranchemen.  The  former  devoted 
themselves  to  tilling  the  soil,  and  the  ranchemen  to 
raising  cattle  for  market.  The  ranchemen  did  not 
like  their  neighbors,  for  every  farm  that  was  located 
and  fenced  in  took  away  just  so  many  acres  of  their 
pasture,  and  the  farmers  did  not  like  the  ranche- 
men, because  their  cattle  broke  down  the  fences  and 
destroyed  the  crops.  The  little  difficulties  that 
were  constantly  arising  between  these  two  classes 
of  men  gradually  gave  way  to  greater  ones,  until  at 
last  the  farmers  began  shooting  the  stock  that  broke 
into  their  fields,  and  the  ranchemen  revenged  them- 
selves by  shooting  the  farmers.  This  led  to  a  state 
of  affairs  that  can  hardly  be  described;  but  the 
troubles  had  all  been  satisfactorily  settled,  and 


22  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

would,  perhaps,  never  have  been  thought  of  again 
if  Ned  Ackerman's  evil  genius  had  not  put  it  into 
his  idle  brain  to  raise  another  "neighborhood  row," 
as  he  called  it,  just  to  be  revenged  upon  the  settlers 
for  paying  so  little  attention  to  him.  His  Cousin 
George  urged  him  to  abandon  the  idea,  telling  him 
in  so  many  words  that,  if  he  persisted,  the  country 
would  be  made  too  hot  to  hold  him ;  but  Ned  would 
not  listen.  He  and  Gus  Robbins  shot  the  cattle,  as 
we  have  described,  and  their  punishment  followed 
close  upon  the  heels  of  it. 

George  Ackerman  was  unlike  his  Cousin  Ned  in 
every  respect.  He  was  industrious  and  saving,  and 
by  his  own  unaided  efforts  he  had  accumulated  pro- 
perty in  stock  worth  six  thousand  dollars.  He 
spent  almost  all  his  time  in  company  with  his 
herdsman,  Zeke,  in  taking  care  of  these  cattle. 
He  preferred  living  in  camp  to  living  at  the  rancho, 
for  the  old  house  did  not  seem  like  home  to  him  any 
longer,  and  neither  did  his  relatives  act  as  though 
they  wanted  him  there.  The  truth  of  the  matter 
was  they  did  not  want  him  there,  and  they  had  not 
been  long  at  the  rancho  before  they  began  laying 
plans  to  drive  him  away.  In  order  to  accomplish 
this,  Ned  urged  his  father  to  take  Geojge's  herd  of 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  23 

cattle  away  from  him,  believing  that  if  it  were  done, 
George  would  be  too  badly  discouraged  to  raise 
another,  and  that  he  would  go  off  somewhere  to 
seek  his  fortune,  leaving  him  and  his  father  to 
manage  the  estate  as  they  saw  fit.  But  George 
positively  refused  to  surrender  the  herd  for  which 
he  had  worked  so  long  and  faithfully,  and  said, 
more  by  his  manner  than  by  words,  that  if  Uncle 
John  attempted  to  take  it  from  him  by  force,  he  and 
Zeke  would  make  a  most  desperate  resistance. 

The  conversation  our  hero  had  with  his  uncle  on 
this  subject  took  place  one  morning  just  as  George 
was  getting  ready  to  start  out  with  a  fresh  supply 
of  provisions  to  join  his  herdsman,  whom  he  had 
left  on  the  prairie  with  his  cattle.  It  was  some 
days  before  he  found  him,  for  Zeke,  having  seen 
signs  of  an  Indian  raiding  party,  had  moved  the 
herd  farther  away  from  the  river,  in  order  to  insure 
its  safety.  But  it  was' not  safe  even  then,  as  George 
icon  learned  to  his  cost. 

The  same  band  of  cattle-thieves  who  had  made 
the  attack  on  the  ranche  for  the  purpose  of  securing 
the  strong  box  in  which  Uncle  John  kept  his  money, 
found  the  herd  and  stampeded  it.  They  drove  the1 
cattle  right  over  George,  who  threw  himself  into  an 


24  GEORGE  AT  THE  WHEEL 


old  buffalo  wallow,  and  thus  escaped  being  trampled 
to  death.  Two  of  the  raiders  kept  on  after  the 
herd  to  turn  it  towards  the  river,  while  the  otheis 
provided  themselves  with  blazing  brands  from  the 
camp-fire  and  searched  the  woods  until  daylight. 

George,  who  could  see  all  their  movements, 
thought  they  were  looking  for  Zeke.  The  old 
fellow  carried  a  repeating  rifle,  and  when  the  raid- 
ers appeared  he  made  a  stubborn  fight,  severely 
wounding  several  of  their  number,  and  George 
thought  they  wanted  to  capture  him,  in  order  that 
they  might  take  revenge  on  him  for  it. 

When  the  cattle- thieves  went  away,  George  filled 
his  haversack  with  the  bacon  and  crackers  they  had 
left  in  camp,  and  set  out  for  home  on  foot,  his  horse 
and  pack-mule  having  been  driven  off  with  the  herd. 
A  few  days  afterwards  he  fell  in  with  one  of  the 
wounded  raiders,  who  had  been  left  behind  by  his 
companions,  and  from  his  lips  he  received  some 
items  of  information  that  astonished  him  not  a 
little.  He  learned  that  an  attack  had  been  made 
upon  the  rancho,  that  his  Uncle  John  was  laying 
plans  to  get  him  out  of  the  way  so  that  Ned  could 
inherit  the  property,  and  that  Philip,  the  Mexican 
cook,  a  man  of  whom  George  had  always  been 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  25 

suspicious,  was  assisting  him  in  carrying  those 
plans  into  execution. 

Springer  (that  was  the  name  of  the  wounded 
cattle-thief,  who  had  once  worked  for  George's 
father)  assured  the  boy  that  it  was  through  Uncle 
John's  connivance  that  the  raiders  knew  where  to 
find  George's  cattle,  and  that  it  was  George  himself, 
and  not  Zeke,  whom  they  were  looking  for  when 
they  were  searching  the  wood^  with  their  fire- 
brands. If  they  had  found  him,  they  would  have 
taken  him  across  the  river  into  Mexico — what  they 
would  have  done  with  him  after  they  had  got  him 
there,  Springer  said  he  didn't  know — and  Uncle 
John  would  have  rewarded  them  for  it  by  bringing 
in  a  thousand  head  of  cattle  and  pasturing  them 
near  the  river,  so  that  the  raiders  could  come  over 
and  capture  them  at  their  leisure. 

When  the  man  had  finished  his  story,  George 
divided  his  small  stock  of  provisions  with  him,  put 
him  on  his  horse,  and  resumed  his  journey  toward 
home.  He  did  not  know  wrhat  to  think  of  the  news 
he  had  just  heard,  and  he  finally  decided  that  he 
would  go  straight  to  Mr.  Gilbert,  who  was  an  old 
friend  of  his  father's,  lay  the  matter  before  him, 
and  be  governed  by  his  advice.  He  was  obliged  to 


26  GEORGE   AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

camp  one  more  night  on  the  prairie  before  he  reached 
Mr.  Gilbert's  rancho,  but  he  did  not  pass  the  night 
alone.  He  had  two  visitors,  one  of  whom  was  the 
owner  of  the  stolen  horse  for  which  Ned  had  traded, 
and  to  which  he  had  held  fast,  even  after  he  knew 
that  the  man  of  whom  he  received  him  had  no 
lawful  right  to  him. 

The  visitors  did  not  know  who  George  was,  and 
consequently  they  were  very  communicative.  They 
told  him  all  about  Silk  Stocking,  and  threatened  to 
do  something  terrible  to  Ned  when  they  found  him. 
They  were  sure  they  would  recognise  him  anywhere 
by  the  clothes  and  ornaments  he  wore.  They  were 
looking  for  a  boy  wearing  a  Mexican  sombrero,  a 
buckskin  coat  with  silver  buttons,  high  patent  leather 
boots,  the  heels  of  which  were  armed  with  silver- 
plated  spurs,  and  who  carried  a  riding-whip  with 
an  ivory  handle.  They  found  a  boy  after  a  while 
who  answered  to  this  description  pretty  nearly,  and 
they — well,  we  have  not  come  to  that  yet. 

George  was  greatly  alarmed  by  what  the  men 
told  him.  He  knew  that  his  cousin  had  got  him- 
self into  serious  trouble  by  holding  fast  to  the  horse 
after  he  knew  the  animal  had  been  stolen,  and  he 
could  see  no  way  to  get  him  out  of  it.  If  he  had 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  27 

been  satisfied  that  the  men  intended  to  punish  him 
in  some  lawful  manner,  it  is  probable  that  he  would 
not  have  thought  of  trying  to  save  him  from  the 
consequences  of  his  folly ;  for  George  was  a  law- 
abiding  boy,  and  he  did  not  believe  in  assisting  a 
culprit  to  escape,  even  though  that  culprit  might 
be  his  own  cousin.  But  he  had  the  best  of  reasons 
for  believing  that  his  visitors  had  made  up  their 
minds  to  take  the  law  into  their  own  hands,  and 
knowing  that  they  had  no  right  to  do  that,  he 
resolved  to  save  his  cousin  from  their  fury,  or  at 
least  to  delay  them  in  their  search  until  he  could 
see  Mr.  Gilbert,  and  ask  him  what  he  thought 
about  it. 

When  morning  came  the  men,  who  had  lost  their 
way,  asked  George  to  put  them  on  the  road  to  Mr. 
Ackerman's  rancho,  but  he  didn't  do  it.  He  sent 
them  thirty-five  miles  out  of  their  course,  after 
which  he  set  out  for  Mr.  Gilbert's  house,  where  he 
arrived  just  at  dark.  He  told  his  old  friend  all  his 
troubles,  not  forgetting  to  repeat  what  Springer  had 
said  about  Uncle  John  and  his  plans,  and  Mr. 
Gilbert,  in  return,  told  him  some  bad  as  well  as 
some  good  news.  The  good  news  was  that  George's 
horse  and  mule  were  safe  in  his  (Mr.  Gilbert's) 


28  GEORGE    AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

corral :  that  Zeke  was  unharmed,  and  that,  with 
the  assistance  of  some  of  the  settlers  he  had  recap- 
tured every  one  of  George's  lost  herd.  The  bad 
news  was,  that  Ned  and  his  friend,  Gus  Bobbins, 
had  been  shooting  Mr.  Cook's  cattle,  that  all  the 
ranchemen  in  the  neighborhood  were  very  angry  at 
them  for  it,  and  that  they  were  going  to  meet  at 
Cook's  on  the  following  day  and  decide  how  they 
would  punish  them. 

This  last  piece  of  intelligence  made  George  all 
the  more  anxious  to  reach  home  in  order  to  warn 
his  cousin,  and  Mr.  Gilbert  urged  him  to  lose  no 
time  in  doing  it.  The  best  thing  Ned  and  Gus 
could  do,  he  said,  would  be  to  go  North  and  stay 
there  until  the  events  of  the  last  few  days  were  for- 
gotten ;  and  as  for  Uncle  John,  he  wasn't  fit  to  be 
any  boy's  guardian,  and  George  had  better  take 
measures  at  once  to  have  a  new  one  appointed. 
Our  hero  thought  this  advice  worth  acting  upon, 
all  except  that  portion  of  it  relating  to  the  selection 
of  a  new  guardian.  He  could  not  bear  the  idea  of 
disgracing  his  father's  only  brother.  Uncle  John 
might  be  guilty  of  the  offences  with  which  he  was 
charged,  and  then  again  he  might  not.  He  had 
nothing  but  Springer's  word  for  it,  and  he  would 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  29 

wait  until  he  had  better  evidence  than  that  before 
he  took  any  action  in  the  case. 

While  the  two  were  talking  the  matter  over,  the 
owner  of  the  stolen  horse  and  his  companion  arrived. 
They  had  learned  that  they  had  been  sent  a  long 
distance  out  of  their  way,  and  they  were  in  very  bad 
humor  over  it.  While  Mr.  Gilbert  entertained  them, 
George  slipped  out  of  the  house,  mounted  his  horse, 
which  one  of  the  herdsmen  had  saddled  for  him,  and 
started  for  home  with  all  haste.  Every  body  there 
was  surprised  to  see  him,  for  Zeke  had  brought  the 
news  of  his  disappearance,  and  he  was  given  up  for 
lost.  More  than  that,  the  trail  along  which  he 
had  just  passed  was  watched  by  men  who  had  orders 
to  make  a  prisoner  of  him  and  take  him  across  the 
river.  They  were  instructed  to  watch  for  a  boy  on 
foot ;  but  George  came  on  horseback,  and  so  passed 
them  in  safety. 

Ned  and  his  friend,  Gus  Bobbins,  were  greatly 
alarmed  when  they  heard  what  George  had  to  say 
to  them,  and  so  was  Uncle  John.  They  agreed  to 
every  thing  he  had  to  propose,  and  in  a  very  few 
minutes  the  three  boys  were  mounted  and  riding 
away  in  the  darkness.  George  had  used  extra  care 
to  enter  and  leave  the  house  without  Philip's  knowl- 


30  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

edge,  but  the  crafty  Mexican  knew  just  what  was 
going  on.  His  first  act,  when  the  boys  were  out  of 
sight,  was  to  put  the  owner  of  the  stolen  horse  and 
his  companion  on  the  wrong  trail,  and  his  next,  to 
hunt  up  the  two  men  who  had  been  ordered  to  cap- 
ture George,  and  tell  them  that  he  had  started  for 
Brownsville.  Then  he  came  back  and  told  his  em- 
ployer what  he  had  done,  and  if  George  could  have 
overheard  their  conversation,  he  would  have  needed 
no  better  evidence  that  his  uncle  was  his  enemy. 
There  was  one  who  did  overhear  it,  and  who  showed 
what  he  thought  of  it  by  knocking  Philip  down. 

George  was  overtaken  and  captured  the  next  day 
while  he  and  his  companions  were  in  camp,  and  the 
last  time  we  saw  him  his  captors  were  just  starting 
to  take  him  across  the  river.  Before  he  took  leave 
of  his  cousin  he  received  permission  to  change 
clothes  with  him,  and  it  was  a  very  fortunate  thing 
for  Ned  that  he  did  so.  The  latter  was  twice 
brought  face  to  face  with  the  owner  of  the  stolen 
horse,  who  was  following  him  with  the  greatest 
perseverance,  and  if  he  had  been  dressed  in  liis 
nobby  suit,  he  would  have  been  recognised  and 
pounced  upon  at  once. 

When   George  was  taken  from   them,  Ned  and 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  31 

Gus  were  left  to  find  their  own  way  to  Browns- 
ville, which  they  reached  in  due  time,  and  a  very 
unsociable  pair  they  were,  too.  Ned  very  unrea- 
sonably charged  his  friend  with  being  the  cause 
of  all  his  troubles,  and  told  him  that  he  had  better 
go  home  and  stay  there.  This  made  Gus  so  angry 
that  he  scarcely  spoke  to  Ned  during  the  journey, 
and  when  they  reached  Brownsville  he  left  him 
without  saying  good-by.  It  was  a  long  time  be- 
fore Ned  heard  of  him  again.  Where  he  went, 
and  what  he  did,  we  have  yet  to  tell. 

As  soon  as  Ned  reached  Brownsville  he  "dressed 
himself  up  like  a  gentleman,"  as  he  expressed  it, 
and  waited  impatiently  for  the  arrival  of  his  father. 
Uncle  John  came  at  last,  and  took  Ned  around  to 
his  hotel  and  up  to  his  room,  where  we  now  find 
them,  and  where  they  had  spent  an  hour  or  more 
in  talking  over  the  incidents  of  the  last  few  days. 
Ned  was  surprised  at  the  anxiety  his  father  ex- 
hibited to  learn  all  the  particulars  of  George's 
capture.  He  was  obliged  to  tell  the  story  over 
and  over  again,  and  when  Uncle  John  had  heard 
all  he  wanted  to  know,  he  dropped  George  entirely, 
and  would  not  speak  of  him  if  he  could  help  it. 


32  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

"He  is  glad  George  has  gone,"  thought  Ned, 
"and  it  wouldn't  surprise  me  in  the  least  to  know 
that  he  had  something  to  do  with  his  disappear- 
ance. Well,  if  he  has  gone  for  good,  I  don't  see 
what  I  can  do  about  it.  I  don't  see  why  I  should 
cry  over  it,  either,  for  I  am  master  of  a  cool  forty 
thousand  a  year.  I  little  thought,  while  I  was 
handling  the  yard-stick  in  old  Robbins's  store  and 
working  for  starvation  wages,  that  I  should  ever 
be  a  millionaire.  Forty  thousand  a  year !  How 
in  the  world  am  I  going  to  spend  it,  I'd  like  to 
know !  Of  course  I  must  go  to  Europe — all  the 
gentlemen  go  there — but  first  I'll  go  to  Foxboro* 
and  lord  it  over  some  of  those  fellows  who  used  to 
slight  me  because  I  was  nothing  but  a  dry-goods 
clerk.  But,  after  all,  I  don't  know  that  I  blame 
them.  I  shall  not  renew  my  association  with  those 
clerks,  for  a  millionaire  ought  to  be  particular  in 
regard  to  the  company  he  keeps." 

"  Now  make  up  your  mind  where  you  want  to  go 
and  we  will  leave  Brownsville  to-night,"  repeated 
Uncle  John,  slapping  his  son  familiarly  on  the 
shoulder  and  breaking  in  upon  his  meditations. 
"We  have  nobody  but  ourselves  to  look  out  for 


LIFE  IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  33 

now  that  George  is  gone,  and  we  can  do  as  we 
please." 

"  But  he  might  escape  and  come  back,  you 
know,"  suggested  Ned. 

"  I  hardly  think — I  am  afraid  he  will  not  be  so 
fortunate,"  replied  Uncle  John.  "Those  cattle- 
thieves  are  a  desperate  lot  of  men." 

"  Don't  you  think  you  ought  to  go  back  to  the 
rancho  and  make  some  eifort  to  find  him  ?"  in- 
quired Ned. 

He  asked  the  question  simply  to  see  what 
answer  his  father  would  make,  and  not  because 
he  wanted  him  to  act  upon  the  hint  thus  thrown 
out. 

"And  put  myself  in  danger  for  nothing?"  ex- 
claimed Uncle  John.  "  That  would  be  the  height 
of  folly.  How  could  I  help  him  while  he  is  across 
the  river  in  the  hands  of  those  desperadoes?  They 
may  have  made  an  end  of  him  already.  Mr.  Gil- 
bert, who  thoroughly  understands  the  temper  of 
the  people  in  that  settlement,  advised  me  to  go 
away  for  a  while,  and  I  shall  certainly  do  so." 

"And  when  we  come  back  I  shall  be  the  lawful 
master  of  the  finest  estate  in  Texas,"  exclaimed 
Ned,  with  great  enthusiasm, 


34  GEORGE    AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

"  I  confess  that  it  looks  that  way  now,"  replied 
Uncle  John,  who,  although  he  was  as  highly  elated 
as  Ned  was,  controlled  himself  better.  '"  Have  you 
any  idea  what  you  will  do  with  your  wealth?" 

"I  know  one  thing,"  answered  Ned,  "and  that 
is,  I'll  not  live  in  Texas.  I'll  leave  an  agent  in 
charge  of  the  ranche  and  go  up  north  where  white 
folks  live.  They  won't  snub  me  because  I  wear 
good  clothes.  Who's  there?" 

The  bell-boy,  who  knocked  at  that  moment,  evi- 
dently took  this  question  for  an  invitation  to  enter. 
At  any  rate  he  opened  the  door,  saying  as  be 
thrust  his  head  into  the  apartment — 

"A  gentleman  to  see  you,  sir." 

Uncle  John  and  Ned  jumped  to  their  feet  in  the 
greatest  surprise  and  consternation.  The  former 
could  not  have  told  just  what  he  stood  in  fear  of, 
but  Ned  could.  He  fully  expected  to  see  the 
owner  of  that  stolen  horse  stalk  into  the  room ;  but 
if  that  gentleman  had  made  his  appearance,  Ned 
would  not  have  been  so  utterly  confounded  as  he 
was  at  the  sight  of  the  visitor  who  came  in.  Uncle 
John  and  Ned  took  just  one  look  at  him  and 
dropped  back  into  their  chairs  without  speaking. 
It  was  George  Ackerman.  He  looked  as  natural 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  85 

as  life,  and  was  apparently  none  the  worse  for 
his  short  sojourn  among  the  cattle-thieves.  His 
presence  there  proved  quite  conclusively  that  Ned 
was  not  yet  lawful  master  of  the  finest  estate  in 
Texas. 


86  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OK, 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  CONTRA-GUERRILLAS. 

rilHE  last  time  we  saw  George  Ackerman  he  was 
dressed  in  his  cousin's  nobby  suit,  and  was 
riding  away  from  camp  between  the  two  cattle- 
thieves,  whom  Philip,  his  uncle's  cook,  had  placed 
upon  his  trail.  He  was  their  prisoner,  and  they 
seemed  determined  to  keep  him  too;  for  one  of 
them,  in  order  to  prevent  all  attempts  at  escape, 
held  fast  to  one  end  of  a  lariat,  the  other  end  of 
which  was  tied  around  the  neck  of  George's  horse. 
The  boy  was  not  frightened  in  the  least — he 
never  was,  unless  he  saw  something  to  be  frightened 
at — but  he  was  anxious  and  uneasy,  as  any  body 
would  have  been  under  the  same  circumstances. 
He  began  to  believe  now,  that  Springer  told  the 
truth ;  and  that  his  capture  was  the  result  of  the 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  37 

plans  his  uncle  had  laid  to  get  him  out  of  the  way, 
so  that  Ned  could  lay  claim  to  the  property.  But 
beyond  that  he  was  all  in  the  dark. 

As  long  as  George  remained  within  sight  of  the 
camp  he  turned  in  his  saddle,  now  and  then,  to  look 
back  at  the  boys  from  whom  he  had  been  so  unex- 
pectedly separated.  They  were  disconsolate  enough, 
if  one  might  judge  by  their  actions.  Gus  Robbins 
was  standing  in  the  edge  of  the  timber  gazing 
stupidly  after  the  prisoner  and  his  captors,  as  if  he 
had  not  yet  been  able  to  make  up  his  mind,  whether 
he  was  awake  or  dreaming ;  and  Ned  was  walking 
back  and  forth,  wringing  his  hands  and  making 
other  demonstrations  indicative  of  a  very  agitated 
state  of  mind. 

"  There  is  nothing  for  him  to  cry  over,"  thought 
George,  who  was  surprised  at  his  cousin's  want  of 
pluck.  "  He  can't  get  lost  if  he  tries  ;  and  he  will 
be  sure  to  meet  his  father  in  Brownsville.  He  had 
no  business  to  shoot  those  cattle,  for  I  told  him  he 
would  get  himself  into  trouble  by  it." 

When  the  camp  and  its  two  unhappy  occupants 
had  been  left  out  of  sight  behind  the  swells,  George 
turned  to  take  a  good  look  at  his  captors.  They 
were  dressed  in  Mexican  costumes ;  but  for  all  that, 


38  GEORGE  AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

he  knew  that  they  were  Americans.  They  were 
a  hard-looking  pair ;  and  if  he  had  had  any  inten- 
tion of  appealing  to  their  sympathies,  one  glance  at 
their  faces  would  have  been  enough  to  drive  all  such 
thoughts  out  of  his  mind. 

"  I  always  heard  that  the  Ackermans  was  a 
plucky  lot,  but  I  didn't  allow  to  find  a  kid  like  you 
so  mighty  cool  an'  keerless  like,"  said  one  of  the 
men,  after  he  had  looked  in  vain  for  some  signs  of 
alarm  in  his  captive's  countenance.  "  Look  here  ! 
You  said  that  you  knew  all  about  Fletcher,  an'  I  ax 
you  again,  who  told  you  about  him  ?" 

"And  I  give  you  the  same  reply  that  I  did 
before,"  returned  George,  "  It's  my  own  business. 
Were  you  with  Fletcher  on  the  night  he  made  the 
attack  on  our  rancho?" 

"  Mebbe  we  was,  an'  mebbe  we  wasn't,"  replied 
the  man. 

"  I  hardly  thought  you  would  confess  it,"  said 
George.  "Philip  thought  he  was  doing  a  very  smart 
thing  when  he  left  that  door  open,  so  that  you 
could  go  into  the  house;  didn't  he?" 

George's  captors  seemed  greatly  astonished  at  this 
question.  They  stared  fixedly  at  him  for  a  moment 
and  then  they  looked  at  each  other. 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  39 

"  You  didn't  succeed  in  getting  the  money-box, 
did  you?"  continued  George,  who  knew  that  the 
men  would  have  given  something  handsome  to  know 
where  he  received  all  his  information.  u  You  got 
nothing  at  the  ranche  but  a  horse — a  dark  chestnut 
with  white  mane  and  tail,  and  four  white  feet." 

"  He  is  over  the  river  now,"  said  one  of  the  men, 
who  was  so  amazed,  that  he  spoke  before  he  thought 
what  he  was  doing. 

"I  know  it."  , 

"  Wai,  go  on.     What  else  do  you  know  ?" 

"  I  know  that  you  expect  to  receive  a  thousand 
head  of  fat  cattle,  as  your  reward  for  making  a 
prisoner  of  me.  You  can  tell  Fletcher,  for  his  satis- 
faction, that  the  next  time  he  wants  to  put  a  spy 
into  any  of  the  ranches  in  this  country,  he  had 
better  select  a  more  reliable  man  than  that  Mexican 
cook.  There!"  added  George,  to  himself,  "  If  I 
am  not  very  much  mistaken,  Philip  is  in  a  fair  way 
to  see  as  much  trouble  as  he  has  tried  to  get  me 
into." 

There  could  be  no  doubt  about  that,  if  the  expres- 
sion en  the  faces  of  the  boy's  captors,  was  any  index 
of  the  thoughts  that  were  passing  through  their 
minds.  He  had  purposely  aroused  their  suspicions 


40  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

against  the  cook,  and  the  significant  glances  they 
exchanged  with  each  other,  had  a  volume  of  mean- 
ing in  them. 

"  When  I  get  home,  the  first  thing  I  do  will  be 
to  tell  Jake  to  kick  Philip  out  of  the  house,"  said 
George,  again  communing  with  himself.  "  Of 
course,  Fletcher  will  want  to  know  who  told  me  all 
these  things,  and  it  would  never  do  to  say  that  I 
got  my  information  from  Springer.  I  say,"  he 
added,  aloud,  "  where  do  you  fellows  make  your 
home,  anyhow?" 

"  You'll  see  when  you  get  thar,"  replied  one  of 
the  men. 

"  I  suppose  you  were  with  Fletcher  on  the  night 
he  jumped  down  on  me  and  stampeded  my  cattle, 
were  you  not?"  continued  George. 

"  Mebbe  we  was,  an'  mebbe  we  wasn't." 

"  I  know  who  was  there  ?" 

"Who?" 

"  Springer.  He  used  to  herd  cattle  for  my 
father,  you  know,  and  I  recognised  him  the  moment 
I  put  my  eyes  on  him.  He  was  shot  right  there," 
said  George,  placing  the  forefingers  of  each  hand 
on  his  legs  to  indicate  the  spots  where  Zeke's 
bullets  had  found  a  lodgement.  "  He  was  badly 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  41 

injured,  too,  and  I  don't  believe  he  ever  got  back 
across  the  river." 

"  Wai,  he  did,"  said  one  of  the  men.  "  He  had 
a  hard  time  of  it,  but  he  got  through  all  right,  an' 
he's  thar  now." 

"I  am  very  glad  to  hear  it,"  said  George,  to 
himself.  "That's  just  what  I  was  trying  to  get  at. 
If  I  can  find  him,  perhaps  he  will  help  me  escape." 

George  held  no  further  conversation  with  his  cap- 
tors during  the  ride,  for  they  were  busy  talking  with 
each  other.  As  they  conversed  wholly  in  the  Span- 
ish language,  George  could  not  understand  what  they 
said,  but  still  he  knew  that  they  were  talking  about 
Philip,  for  he  heard  his  name  mentioned  now  and 
then,  and  it  was  almost  always  coupled  with  an 
oath.  They  seemed  to  think  that  their  trusted  spy 
had  been  guilty  of  treachery,  and  they  made  a 
report  to  that  effect  when  they  got  across  the  river. 

It  was  five  miles  to  the  nearest  belt  of  timber, 
and  while  they  were  travelling  toward  it,  the  cattle- 
thieves  exercised  the  utmost  caution,  stopping  on 
the  top  of  every  swell  and  sweeping  their  eyes 
around  the  horizon  to  make  sure  that  there  was 
no  one  in  sight.  But  they  reached  the  timber 
without  being  seen  by  anybody,  and  there  they 


42  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

camped  to  wait  until  dark.  They  did  not  think 
it  safe  to  approach  the  ford  in  broad  daylight. 
George  now  had  an  opportunity  to  finish  the  nap 
from  which  he  had  been  so  rudely  awakened,  and 
the  cattle- thieves  took  turns  in  standing  guard. 

When  night  came,  he  was  ordered  into  the 
saddle  again  and  led  toward  the  ford,  his  captors 
taking  the  same  precautions  as  before  to  prevent 
his  escape.  They  crossed  the  river  in  safety,  and 
as  soon  as  their  horses  had  mounted  the  opposite 
bank,  they  were  put  to  their  full  speed.  There 
was  no  need  of  concealment  now,  for  the  cattle- 
thieves  were  among  friends  who,  had  they  been 
pursued  by  ranchemen  or  troops  from  Texas,  would 
have  done  everything  in  their  power  to  aid  them  to 
escape. 

They  now  had  a  journey  of  eighteen  miles  before 
them,  and  it  required  but  a  little  over  two  hours 
for  them  to  accomplish  it.  It  was  so  dark  at  first 
that  George  could  not  see  his  hand  before  him ; 
but  the  moon  arose  after  a  while,  and  then  he  was 
able  to  see  that  they  were  following  a  well-beaten 
trail,  which  ran  in  a  tortuous  course  through  the 
hills.  This  trail  finally  led  them  into  a  wide 
valley,  from  the  middle  of  which  arose  the  white- 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  43 

washed  walls  of  what  had  been  a  comfortable 
rancho.  Their  horses'  hoofs  rang  out  loudly  on  the 
pavement  as  they  rode  unchallenged  into  the  open 
gateway  and  along  the  arched  passage  that  led  to 
the  spacious  patio  or  court-yard.  It  was  deserted, 
save  by  a  few  goats  that  were  feeding  at  a  pile  of 
fodder  in  one  corner,  and  a  disconsolate  dog  or  two 
which,  having  been  awakened  from  his  sleep,  was 
stealing  off  under  the  shadow  of  the  walls  to  find  a 
new  resting-place. 

On  the  four  sides  of  the  court-yard,  doorways 
without  doors  yawned  darkly  at  the  intruders.  In 
front  of  one  of  these  doors  the  cattle- thieves  dis- 
mounted, and  while  one  remained  outside  to  guard 
the  prisoner,  the  other  entered  with  the  horses, 
which  he  hitched  there  and  supplied  with  a  feed  of 
corn.  When  he  came  out  again,  he  brought  the 
saddles  and  blankets  with  him. 

"Now  then,"  said  he,  as  he  led  the  way  into  one 
of  the  adjoining  apartments,  "  we'll  go  in  here. 
Thar's  plenty  of  room  in  our  hotel,  and  thar's  no 
need  of  crowdin1  the  boarders.  Spread  your 
blanket  down  anywheres,  young  fellow,  and  don't 
try  to  skip  outen  here  durin'  the  night,  fur  we 
always  sleep  with  one  eye  open." 


44  GEOEGE   AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

As  if  to  put  all  attempts  at  escape  out  of  the 
question,  the  speaker  spread  his  own  couch  in  front 
of  the  door  and  stretched  himself  upon  it. 

A  bed  which  consists  simply  of  a  blanket  and 
saddle  is  quickly  made  up,  and  George,  who .  had 
not  yet  recovered  from  the  fatigue  of  his  five  days' 
journey  on  foot,  fell  fast  asleep  almost  as  soon  as 
he  took  possession  of  it.  When  he  awoke  at  day- 
light he  was  not  a  little  astonished  at  what  he  saw. 
The  rooms  opening  off  the  court-yard,  which  had 
been  so  silent  and  apparently  deserted  when  he 
rode  into  the  rancho  had,  during  his  sleep,  given 
up  a  most  unexpected  tenantry — men,  women, 
children,  goats  and  dogs,  so  many,  in  fact,  that 
it  was  a  wonder  where  they  all  came  from.  A 
confused  babel  of  voices  saluted  his  ears,  and 
finally  awoke  his  captors,  who  made  no  effort  to 
restrain  him  when  he  put  on  his  sombrero  and 
walked  out  into  the  courtyard. 

Having  heard  some  astonishing  stories  told  of 
the  almost  regal  state  maintained  by  wealthy  Mexi- 
can rancheros  before  the  war,  George  looked  about 
him  with  the  greatest  interest.  On  every  side  he 
saw  the  lingering  remains  of  departed  grandeur. 
In  the  centre  of  the  court-yard  was  a  ruined  foun* 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  45 

tain,  and  beyond  it  was  a  long  column  of  fluted 
pillars,  with  gaily-carved  capitals.  In  front  of 
these  pillars  were  the  remains  of  a  garden,  now 
trodden  hard  with  the  pressure  of  many  feet,  but 
still  aifording  a  little  sustenance  to  a  few  flowerless 
shrubs  and  one  or  two  sickly  orange  and  fig  trees. 
Upon  the  broad  stone  verandah  on  the  other  side 
of  the  fluted  columns  the  master  of  the  house  had 
doubtless  feasted  his  guests,  or  smoked  and  dozed 
away  the  time  in  his  hammock,  while  the  fountain 
played  merrily  and  the  air  was  redolent  of  the 
perfume  of  flowers.  Now  slouching  figures,  clad 
in  rusty  leather  trowsers  and  velvet  jackets,  and 
smoking  villainous  cigarettes,  swaggered  through  the 
court-yard,  and  from  the  adjoining  rooms,  with 
their  tessellated  floors  and  frescoed  ceilings,  came 
the  impatient  calls  of  hungry  cattle  and  horses, 
which  were  growing  tired  of  waiting  for  their  break- 
fast. 

While  George  was  wondering  where  the  master 
was,  and  what  had  happened  to  bring  about  so  great 
a  change  in  the  house,  he  walked  slowly  along  the 
court-yard,  glancing  into  all  the  rooms  as  he  passed, 
and  no  one  spoke  to  him,  or  even  seemed  to  notice 
him.  He  took  a  survey  of  the  verandah,  which 


46  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

was  littered  with  blankets,  ponchos,  saddles  and 
weapons,  and  was  about  to  retrace  his  steps,  when 
he  heard  a  suppressed  exclamation  of  astonishment 
near  him,  and  turned  quickly  to  find  himself  face 
to  face  with  his  father's  old  herdsman,  the  cattle- 
thief  who  had  warned  him  against  his  Uncle  John. 
He  sat  on  his  blanket,  with  his  back  against  the 
wall,  and  the  crutches  which  lay  by  his  side  proved 
that  he  had  not  yet  fully  recovered  from  the  wounds 
that  had  been  inflicted  upon  him  by  Zeke's  Win- 
chester. 

"  Hallo,  Springer !"  exclaimed  George,  starting 
forward  ;  but  as  he  was  about  to  mcrunt  the  steps 
leading  to  the  verandah,  the  man  threw  up  his 
hand,  with  a  warning  gesture. 

"  Keep  your  distance,"  said  he,  in  a  low  tone. 
"  We  mustn't  be  too  friendly,  kase  thar's  too  many 
watchin'  you  !" 

"  Humph  !"  exclaimed  George.  "  There  doesn't 
seem  to  be  anybody  watching  me.  I  have  been  all 
around  the  court-yard,  and  nobody  said  a  word 
to  me." 

"No  difference,"  replied  Springer.  "They  all 
know  you,  and  have  got  their  eyes  on  you.  Don't 
you  think  now  that  I  knowed  what  I  was  talking 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  47 

about  when  I  told  you  that  your  uncle  wasn't  no 
friend  of  your'n  ?  Where  did  they  find  you?" 

"  They  surprised  and  captured  me  while  I  was  en 
my  way  to  Brownsville,"  replied  George,  who,  still 
adhering  to  the  resolution  he  had  already  made  that 
he  would  not  discuss  private  family  matters  with 
such  a  fellow  as  Springer,  hastened  to  add,  "  Who 
runs  this  rancho,  and  what  are  these  men  doing 
here  ?  Are  they  all  cattle-thieves  ?  There  must 
be  five  or  six  hundred  of  them." 

"  The  house  belongs  to  Don  Miguel  de —  some- 
thing; I  disremember  the  last  name,"  answered 
Springer.  "  You  see  he  thought  when  Max  came 
over  here,  him  and  the  French  soldiers  would  be  sure 
to  clean  out  Juarez ;  so  the  Don,  he  accepts  some 
kind  of  an  office  under  the  emperor,  and  Juarez,  he 
confiscates  his  property,  and  Max,  he  sends  a  regi- 
ment here  to  watch  things.  But  they  don't  find 
nothing  much  to  watch,  all  the  property  'ceptin'  the 
house  havin'  been  took  away,  an'  so  they  settles 
down  to  cattle  stealin'." 

u  Then  these  men  are  Maximilian's  soldiers,  are 
they?"  said  George. 

"Yes;  they're  the  contra-guerrillas,  and  a  bad 
lot  they  are,  too." 


48  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

u  I  have  heard  of  them,"  said  George,  with  an 
involuntary  shudder.  "  The  people  in  Brownsville 
and  Matamoras  say  there  is  not  a  man  in  the  whole 
crowd  who  has  not  committed  seme  crime." 

"No  more  is  there,"  replied  Springer.  "I'd 
oughter  know,  kase  I  belong  to  'em." 

"  Is  Fletcher  the  colonel  of  the  regiment?" 

"  No.  He's  only  the  boss  of  the  cattle  stealin' 
expeditions,  kase  he  knows  the  country  and  the 
ranches  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  better'n  any 
body  else.  His  idea  of  stealing  you  was  a  little 
private  speculation  of  his'n,  an'  thar's  only  a  few 
of  us  in'to  it.  Philip  is  the  one  that  put  him  up  to 
it.  You  see,  he  heard  your  uncle  an'  that  boy  of 
his'n  talkin'  agin  you,  an'  wishin'  you  was  out  of 
the  way  so't  they  could  have  the  ranche  all  their- 
selves,  an'  Philip,  he  skirmished  around  in  that  sly 
way  of  his'n  till  he  got  on  your  uncle's  blind  side, 
an'  then  he  told  him  that  if  he'd  promise  to  leave 
a  thousand  head  of  cattle  where  they  could  be  stole 
easy,  he'd  see  that  you  didn't  never  trouble  him  no 
more.  I  wouldn't  tell  you  no  lie  about  this  busi- 
ness," added  Springer,  earnestly.  "You  give  me 
grub  and  water  when  I  was  starvin'  fur  'em,  an* 
put  me  on  my  hoss,  an'  give  me  a  chance  for  my 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  49 

life,  when  nobody  else  wouldn't  a  done  it ;  an'  I  m 
goin'  to  do  you  a  good  turn  to  pay  you  for  it,  if  I 
can." 

"  Well,  it  is  quite  in  your  power  to  do  me  a  good 
turn,"  said  George,  quietly.  "You  can  help  me 
get  away  from  here." 

U0,  no,  I  can't  do  that,"  exclaimed  Springer.  "  I 
want  to  put  you  on  your  guard  against  your  uncle 
an'  cousin,  so  that  you  will  look  out  for  them.  They 
mean  harm  to  you,  sure's  you're  born  !" 

"  And  it  seems  that  they  have  carried  out  their 
plans,  too,"  said  George,  dolefully.  "  Have  you 
any  idea  what  these  fellows  intend  to  do  with  me?" 

"  They  ain't  agoin'  to  do  nothing  to  you,"  said 
Springer,  encouragingly.  "  They've  just  going  to 
hold  fast  to  you,  that's  all ;  an'  as  long  as  Fletcher 
has  got  you  under  his  thumb,  he's  just  as  good  as 
owner  of  the  Ackerman  ranche  an'  all  the  cattle 
that's  onto  it.  You  see  ?" 

"  No,  I  don't,"  answered  George. 

"  Wai,  then  I'll  make  it  plain  to  you.  A'most 
all  the  beef  we  get  for  our  army  comes  from  over 
the  river.  The  soldiers  eat  a  power  of  it,  an'  when 
the  quartermaster  wants  some  more,  he'll  send 

word  to  Fletcher,  an'  Fletcher,  he'll  send  word  to 
4 


50  GLORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

your  uncle  by  that  Mexican  cook  of  liis'n  to  bring 
in  another  thousand  head  so't  we  can  steal  'em,  an' 
your  uncle,  he'll  have  to  do  it ;  kase  if  he  don't, 
Fletcher,  he'll  blow  the  whole  thing,  an'  what  would 
the  neighbors  do  to  your  Uncle  John?  They'd 
handle  him  rough,  I  tell  you  !" 

George  made  no  reply.  He  could  not  bear  to 
think  of  what  the  settlers  would  do  if  they  were 
acquainted  with  the  fact  that  Uncle  John  had 
deliberately  caused  his  nephew  to  be  captured  and 
carried  off  by  the  guerrillas  in  order  that  he  might 
obtain  possession  of  his  property.  It  was  very 
probable  that  they  would  "handle  him  rough,"  and 
that,  too,  without  the  aid  of  judge  or  jury. 

"But  look  here,  Springer,"  said  George,  after  a 
moment's  reflection.  "  You  told  me  that  you  were 
to  receive  only  a  thousand  head  of  cattle  for  cap- 
turing me.  When  you  get  them  you  can't  demand 
any  more." 

"We  can  an'  we  will,"  said  Springer,  stoutly. 
"We'll  ax  for  cattle  just  as  often  as  we  please,  an' 
your  Uncle  John,  he  dassen't  say  no  to  us.  That's 
Fletcher's  plan." 

"  This  is  a  pretty  state  of  affairs,"  said  George, 
angrily.  "Must  I  pay  for  my  capture  out  of  my 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  51 

own  pocket,  and  then  stand  still  and  allow  myself 
to  be  stripped  clean?" 

Springer  shrugged  his  shoulders  as  if  to  say  that 
the  boy  could  answer  these  questions  in  any  way 
he  pleased,  and  the  latter,  after  turning  the  situ- 
ation over  in  his  mind,  said  with  all  the  bitterness 
he  could  throw  into  his  tones : 

"I  am  not  going  to  stay  here  and  be  robbed  in 
this  way.  The  Mexican  government  can't  protect 
me,  and  my  own  government  won't,  for  fear  of 
hurting  the  feelings  of  you  cattle-stealing  gentle- 
men, and  I  am  going  to  take  care  of  myself. 
Springer,  you  must  assist  me  to  escape." 

We  must  pause  here  for  a  moment  to  give  the 
reader  some  idea  of  the  state  of  affairs  on  our  Texan 
border  at  the  time  of  which  we  write,  for  George 
was  quite  correct  when  he  said  that  the  Mexican 
government  could  not  protect  him  and  that  his 
own  government  would  not. 

From  the  days  of  Jacob  Sadelmayer,  who  visited 
the  Apache  country  about  the  year  1744,  until 
within  a  few  years  past,  the  Mexican  people  al- 
lowed themselves  to  be  regularly  and  systemati- 
cally robbed  by  bands  of  raiding  Indians  who  were 
armed  with  nothing  more  formidable  than  bows  and 


52  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

arrows.  During  our  civil  war,  and  for  years  after- 
ward, these  Indians  turned  their  attention  to  the 
frontier  settlements  of  Texas,  and  forced  them 
back  a  hundred  and  fifty  miles.  Our  government 
uttered  some  feeble  protests,  but  it  was  not  to  be 
expected  that  a  people  who  had  for  so  many  years 
submitted  to  the  forays  of  these  savages,  were  going 
to  make  vigorous  warfare  upon  them  for  our  pro- 
tection. It  was  not  to  their  interest  to  do  so,  for 
the  reason  that  as  long  as  these  raiders  could  find 
market  for  their  plunder  in  Mexico,  and  could 
retreat  there  to  get  out  of  reach  of  our  troops,  they 
allowed  the  Mexicans  themselves  to  rest  in  peace. 

At  the  time  George  Ackerman  was  taken  pri- 
soner, Maximilian,  having  been  abandoned  by  the 
French  soldiers,  who  had  been  withdrawn  on  the 
demand  of  our  government,  was  making  his  last 
stand  against  Juarez.  His  soldiers  were  deserting 
him  by  hundreds,  and  as  the  most  of  them  would 
rather  steal  than  work  any  day,  they  formed  them- 
selves into  bands,  and  plundered  their  own  country- 
men and  the  Texans  with  the  greatest  impartiality. 
Fletcher  and  his  band  nominally  belonged  to  one 
of  Maximilian's  regiments,  but  they  were  nothing 
better  than  professional  thieves.  They  formed  a 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  53 

sort  of  foraging  party  ;  but  instead  of  foraging  upon 
the  enemy,  they  raided  upon  the  Texans,  drove  off 
their  cattle  and  sold  them  to  Maximilian's  com- 
missary. These  raiding  parties  were  almost  always 
pursued,  and  although  some  of  them  were  overtaken 
and  punished,  the  majority  succeeded  in  crossing 
the  river,  where  they  were  safe.  The  Mexican  au- 
thorities would  not  arrest  them,  and  our  troops 
dared  not  follow  them  over  the  Rio  Grande  for  fear 
of  bringing  on  a  war  with  Mexico.  Texan  ranche- 
men,  when  they  passed  through  Mexican  towns, 
often  found  property  there  that  had  been  stolen 
from  them,  but  their  demands  for  it  were  met  with 
derision  and  contempt. 

This  was  the  way  matters  stood  on  the  morning 
that  George  Ackerman  found  himself  a  prisoner 
among  the  Contra- Guerillas.  His  chances  for 
seeing  home  and  friends  again  would  have  been 
much  better  if  the  United  States  and  Mexico  had 
been  at  war  and  he  had  been  captured  in  battle, 
for  then  he  might  have  looked  forward  to  an  ex- 
change ;  but  as  it  was,  there  was  no  such  hope  for 
him. 


54  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 


CHAPTER  IV. 

MORE   ABOUT   SILK   STOCKING. 

fT^URN  about  is  fair  play,  Springer,"  said  George. 
"  I  fed  you  when  you  were  hungry,  put  you  on 
your  horse  and  gave  you  a  chance  to  escape  to  this 
side  of  the  river,  and  you  must  help  me  in  some 
way." 

"  I  don't  see  how  I  can  do  it,"  replied  the 
wounded  cattle-thief,  who  seemed  to  be  alarmed  by 
the  proposition.  "  If  I  do  an'  am  ketched  at  it,  I'm 
a  goner.  You  didn't  run  no  risk  by  helpin'  me." 

''I  didn't!"  exclaimed  George.  "I  know  a 
story  worth  two  of  that.  What  do  you  suppose  the 
settlers  would  do  to  me,  if  they  should  find  out  that 
I  had  given  aid  and  comfort  to  such  a  man  as  you 

9" 

are  t 

"  How  are  they  goin'  to  find  it  out  ?  It  ain't 
likely  that  ary  one  of  us  will  tell  'em  of  it." 

"  And  neither  is  it  likely  that  I  shall  tell  Fletcher 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  55 

if  you  assist  me,"  answered  George.  "You  see, 
Springer " 

"Easy!  easy!"  whispered  the  man,  raising  his 
hand  warningly.  "  He's  coming." 

"  Who  is  coming?" 

"  The  boss." 

George  faced  about  and  saw  a  tall  fellow,  dressed 
in  Mexican  costume,  picking  his  way  among  the 
recumbent  guerrillas  who  were  stretched  out  on  their 
ponchos  in  the  court-yard,  waiting  for  breakfast. 
As  he  came  nearer,  George  turned  away  from 
Springer,  and  looked  at  him  with  a  good  deal  of 
curiosity.  He  was  not  a  Mexican — there  was  that 
much  to  be  said  in  his  favor — but  there  was  noth- 
ing in  his  face  that  induced  the  captive  to  appeal  to 
his  sympathies.  When  the  boy  descended  the  steps 
leading  down  from  the  verandah,  the  robber  chief 
stood  at  the  foot  waiting  for  him. 

"  So  you'r  George  Ackerman,  are  you  ?"  said 
he,  thrusting  his  hands  deep  into  his  pockets  and 
looking  down  at  the  boy.  "  Now,  I  want  to  know, 
who  told  you  so  much  ?" 

The  man  spoke  in  an  abrupt  tone,  but  his  face 
wore  a  good-natured  smile,  and  George  did  not  feel 
in  the  least  afraid  of  him. 


66  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  The  fellows  who  brought  you  in  here  last  night, 
seem  to  think  that  Philip  has  been  talking  too 
much,"  continued  Fletcher;  "  and  if  that  is  the 
case,  I  want  to  know  it." 

If  the  man  had  looked  toward  Springer,  who  at 
that  moment  appeared  to  be  busily  engaged  in 
adjusting  the  bandages  he  wore  about  his  wounded 
legs,  he  would  have  seen  that  his  face  had  grown 
very  white,  and  that  he  was  listening  intently  for 
George's  reply. 

"You  can  ask  Philip  about  that  the  next  time 
you  see  him,"  was  the  answer,  which  was  given  in 
a  tone  that  was  calculated  to  strengthen  Fletcher's 
suspicions  against  the  cook.  "  I  know  why  my 
uncle  wants  to  get  rid  of  me,  and  how  he  intends  to 
accomplish  his  object ;  and  whether  or  not  he  will 
succeed,  depends  entirely  upon  yourself.  I  am  your 
prisoner,  and  you  have  the  power  to  do  with  me  as 
you  please." 

"Well,  you  are  a  cool  one,  that's  a  fact," 
exclaimed  Fletcher,  who  seemed  to  be  astonished  at 
the  boy's  courage.  "  He  will  succeed,  so  far  as 
getting  rid  of  all  his  cattle  is  concerned,  your  uncle 
will;  but " 


LIFE   IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  57 

"  They  are  not  his  cattle,"  interrupted  George. 
"  They  belong  to  me  individually." 

"No  odds.  We  don't  care  who  belongs  to  'em, 
so  long  as  we  get  'em,"  replied  the  guerrilla,  cheer- 
fully. u  As  I  was  going  on  to  say,  your  uncle  will 
get  rid  of  all  his  cattle,  but  he  won't  get  rid  of  you, 
by  a  long  shot.  We  want  the  beef,  and  we  don't 
care  how  we  get  it,  if  we  don't  have  to  fight  for  it ; 
but  I  aint  going  to  put  an  ugly  hand  on  you,  and 
I'll  make  it  hot  for  anybody  who  does.  I  haint  got 
nothing  against  you.  You  don't  stand  between  me 
and  a  fortune.  I  reckon  there  are  others  in  the 
settlement  who  know  as  much  as  you  do  ?" 

"  There  are  some  there  who  suspect  as  much 
as  I  know,"  replied  George.  "I  had  a  long  talk 
with  one  of  my  friends  about  it,  night  before 
last." 

"  Then  Pnilip  will  have  to  come  away  from  that 
ranche,  for  he  won't  be  of  no  more  use  there,"  said 
Fletcher.  "  Now,  I  aint  a  going  to  be  any  harder 
on  you  than  I  can  help.  You  can  walk  around  the 
ranche  as  much  as  you  please;  but  you  can  see  for 
yourself,  that  it  won't  be  of  no  use  for  you  to  try 
to  get  away.  If  we  should  catch  you  at  that,  we'd 
have  to  shut  you  up  in  one  of  those  rooms  and  jwt 


58  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

a  guard  over  you.  Come  on,  and  let's  get  some 
breakfast." 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  with  me,  any  how  ?'* 
asked  George,  as  he  followed  the  guerrilla  toward 
the  other  end  of  the  court-yard. 

"  0,  we'll  let  you  visit  with  us,  until  we  get  all 
Ackerman's  cattle ;  and  then  we'll  set  you  back 
across  the  river,  so  that  you  can  make  it  warm 
for  the  old  rascal,"  replied  Fletcher,  with  an 
encouraging  wink. 

"  I  don't  want  to  stay  here  until  my  stock  is  all 
stolen,"  said  George;  and  he  added  to  himself: 
"  I  won't,  either." 

The  boy  breathed  much  easier  after  his  interview 
with  the  robber  chief.  He  had  never  expected  to  be 
so  well  treated  by  the  man  who  always  led  the  guer- 
rillas on  their  plundering  expeditions,  and  whose 
deeds  of  violence  had  much  to  do  with  the  reputation 
those  same  guerrillas  bore.  He  had  the  assurance 
that  no  harm  was  intended  him,  and  consequently 
his  mind  was  at  rest  on  that  score ;  but  he  did  not 
want  to  stay  there  a  passive  prisoner,  and,  what 
was  more,  he  was  determined  that  he  would  not. 
If  he  saw  a  chance  for  escape  he  would  improve  it, 
and  he  would  take  some  desperate  risks,  too. 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  59 

That  day  was  a  dreary  one  to  George,  who  could 
find  nothing  to  interest  him.  He  could  not  smoke 
and  doze  away  the  long  hours  in  his  blanket,  as  the 
Mexicans  did,  and  he  had  already  seen  every  thing 
there  was  to  be  seen  about  the  rancho.  He  was 
surprised  at  the  manner  in  which  the  guerrillas  per- 
formed garrison  duty.  There  was  no  guard  mount, 
such  as  he  had  seen  at  the  fort  on  the  other  side  of 
the  river ;  there  was  no  sentry  at  the  gateway,  no 
herdsmen  to  take  care  of  the  horses,  the  most  of 
which  were  allowed  to  run  loose  in  the  valley ;  and 
if  Springer  had  not  told  him  that  the  regiment  had 
been  sent  there  to  watch  the  rancho,  he  never  would 
have  known  it  from  anything  they  did  to  indicate 
the  fact.  No  one  paid  the  least  attention  to  him, 
not  even  Springer,  who  must  have  taken  himself  off 
to  some  safe  hiding-place,  for  George  could  not  find 
him  again. 

*"•  He  is  afraid  that  I  will  ask  him  to  assist  me 
in  making  my  escape,"  thought  the  boy,  and  he 
made  a  pretty  shrewd  guess  as  to  the  cause  of  the 
man's  sudden  disappearance.  "Well,  who  cares? 
If  they  are  going  to  allow  me  to  run  around  as  I 
please,  I'll  not  ask  help  of  any  body.  I  wonder 
what  they  have  done  with  my  horse?" 


60  GEORGE    AT   TEE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

George  answered  this  question  for  himself  by 
directing  his  course  toward  the  room  into  which  he 
had  seen  Ranger  led  the  night  before.  The  animal 
was  still  there.  He  greeted  his  muster  with  a  low 
whinny  of  recognition,  and  rubbed  his  head  famil- 
iarly against  his  shoulders  when  the  boy  patted  his 
glossy  neck.  He  tried  to  follow  George,  too,  when 
the  latter  went  out,  but  he  was  tied  to  a  ring 
in  the  wall,  and  his  master  dared  not  set  him  at 
liberty. 

"I  am  afraid  that  our  days  of  companionship  are 
over,  Ranger."  said  George,  as  he  put  his  hands  into 
his  pockets  and  sauntered  toward  the  gate.  "  Fletcher 
seems  to  think  that  I  can't  get  away  from  here  if 
he  keeps  you  tied  up.  But  there  are  other  horses 
close  at  hand,  some  of  them  as  good  as  you  are, 
probably,  and  I  must  take  one  of  them." 

There  was  no  one  at  the  gate  to  stop  him,  and 
George  went  through  it,  and  turning  around  an 
angle  of  the  wall  bent  his  steps  towards  the  place 
where  the  horses  belonging  to  the  guerrillas  were 
grazing,  walking  slowly  and  stopping  now  and  "hen 
to  look  about  him  as  if  he  had  determined  upon 
nothing  in  particular.  He  did  not  know  how  many 
j)airs  of  eyes  there  might  be  watching  him,  and  ha 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  61 

was  careful  to  do  nothing  to  excite  the  suspicions  of 
his  guard,  if  he  had  any.  He  moved  leisurely 
around  the  building  and  then  went  back  through 
the  gate  and  lay  down  upon  his  blanket,  which  he 
had  spread  in  front  of  the  room  that  had  served  him 
and  his  captors  for  a  sleeping  apartment.  His  short 
walk  outside  the  walls  had  satisfied  him  that  unless 
some  restraint  was  put  upon  his  actions  his  captivity 
would  be  of  very  short  duration.  If  he  could  leave 
the  rancho  after  dark,  it  would  be  no  trouble  at  all 
for  him  to  capture  one  of  the  horses  that  were  feed- 
ing on  the  plain,  and  set  out  for  the  nearest  ford. 
He  resolved  that  he  would  attempt  it  that  very 
night. 

George  made  three  or  four  more  excursions  out- 
side the  rancho  that  afternoon,  each  time  going  a 
little  farther  away  from  the  building  than  before, 
and  when  he  came  in  from  his  last  ramble  he  had 
been  gone  two  hours,  and  Fletcher  was  looking  for 
him. 

"  0,  here  you  are,"  he  exclaimed,  as  George  ap 
preached  him.     "  I  reckoned  that  perhaps  you  had 
skipped  out." 

The  man  said  this  with  a  grin  which  made 
George  believe  that  perhaps  his  escape  could  not 


62  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

be  accomplished  so  easily  after  all.  It  told  him  as 
plainly  as  words  that  he  was  watched. 

"Skipped  out!"  repeated  George,  "I  guess  not. 
I  have  no  desire  to  be  shut  up  in  one  of  these 
rooms  with  a  guard  over  me." 

"I  saw  you  looking  at  the  horses,"  continued 
Fletcher.  "Did  you  notice  that  fellow  with  the 
white  mane  and  tail,  and  four  white  feet?" 

Yes,  George  had  noticed  him,  and  with  the  eye 
of  a  horseman,  too.  The  animal  would  have  been 
conspicuous  for  his  beauty  in  a  drove  of  thorough- 
breds; and  among  the  shaggy,  ill-conditioned 
beasts  that  the  guerrillas  owned,  he  looked  like  a 
well-dressed  gentleman  surrounded  by  a  crowd  of 
ragamuffins. 

"That's  the  fellow  that  followed  us  off  on  the 
night  we  went  to  your  rancho  after  that  money 
box,"  said  Fletcher.  "  He's  just  lightning,  and 
if  some  of  those  rich  fellows  down  there  with 
Max  don't  offer  me  something  handsome  for  him, 
I'll  keep  him  myself." 

"It  must  be  the  stolen  horse  that  goes  by  the 
name  of  Silk  Stocking,"  thought  George.  "I 
wonder  if  he  would  let  me  catch  him  ?  If  he  would, 
I  could  get  Ned  out  of  one  scrape  easily  enough." 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  63 

"I  reckon  you  won't  be  lonesome  to-night  while 
I  am  gone,  will  you?"  continued  Fletcher,  as  he 
led  the  way  into  one  of  the  rooms  in  which  a  dozen 
or  more  guerrillas  were  sitting  on  the  floor  eating 
their  supper  of  broiled  beef  and  tortillas.  These, 
as  George  afterward  learned,  were  the  men  whom 
Fletcher  had  selected  to  accompany  him  on  a  raid 
he  intended  to  make  that  night.  "Well,  I  can't 
help  it  if  you  are  lonesome,  for  business  is  business, 
and  has  got  to  be  attended  to  while  the  moon 
shines.  We  can't  go  but  two  or  three  times  more, 
and  then  we'll  have  to  stop  for  a  whole  month," 
added  the  boss  cattle- thief,  with  a  deep  sigh  of 


regret. 


u  That  knocks  me,"  said  George,  to  himself.  "I 
can't  carry  out  my  plans  while  these  fellows  are  off 
on  a  raid,  for  while  I  am  looking  around  for  a  ford 
I  might  run  right  into  them.  If  I  don't  succeed 
in  the  very  first  attempt  I  am  done  for."  Then 
aloud  he  said:  "You'll  not  hurt  any  body  while 
you  are  gone,  will  you?" 

"  Not  if  we  can  help  it,"  replied  Fletcher,  in  the 
most  unconcerned  manner  possible.  "  We're  bound 
to  have  the  cattle,  and  those  who  don't  want  to  get 
popped  over  will  stay  in  doors,  where  they  belong." 


64  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

It  was  all  George  could  do  to  refrain  from  telling 
the  nonchalant  robber  that  things  would  not  al- 
ways be  so — that  if  he  lived,  he  would  see  the  day 
that  he  could  not  rob  and  shoot  honest  settlers 
without  being  followed  across  the  river  and  pun- 
ished wherever  he  was  found — and  if  he  had  told 
him  so,  he  would  have  uttered  nothing  but  the 
truth.  The  time  did  come,  sure  enough,  and 
Fletcher  lived  to  see  it,  when  the  simple  crossing 
of  the  Rio  Grande  did  not  insure  the  safety  of  the 
raiders.  They  were  pursued  iato  thfir  own  terri* 
tory  and  soundly  thrashed  there,  and  George 
Ackerman  himself  was  the  first  guide  who  led  the 
troops  in  the  pursuit.  But,  angry  as  he  was,  the 
boy  did  not  give  utterance  to  the  thoughts  that 
were  flashing  through  his  mind.  He  knew  that  it 
would  be  folly  to  irritate  the  guerrilla,  for  the  latter 
might  put  him  in  close  confinement,  and  then  there 
would  be  no  such  thing  as  escape  for  him. 

Supper  over,  the  cattle-thieves  went  out  to  saddle 
their  horses,  and  when  everything  was  ready  for 
the  start,  they  mounted  and  rode  away,  Fletcher 
pausing  long  enough  to  ask  his  captor  if  he  had 
any  word  to  send  across  the  river.  George  replied 
that  he  had  not,  adding,  in  undertone : 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  65 

"  I  wish  I  could  send  word  to  the  settlers  to  be 
on  the  alert,  to  give  you  the  worst  whipping  you 
ever  had." 

But,  if  George  had  only  known  it,  there  was  no 
need  of  sending  warning  to  the  settlers.  Fletcher 
came  back  just  before  daylight  with  no  cattle,  and 
three  men  less  than  he  had  when  he  went  out. 
The  noise  the  guerrillas  made  on  their  return  awoke 
George,  who  gleaned  from  the  few  scraps  of  their 
conversation  that  he  was  able  to  catch,  that  they 
had  had  their  trouble  for  their  pains — that  the 
ranchmen  were  waiting  for  them,  and  whipped 
them  beautifully  before  they  fairly  gained  a  footing 
on  Texas  soil. 

"  Good  for  the  ranchemen,"  thought  George,  as 
he  rolled  himself  up  in  his  blanket  and  tried  to 
find  an  easy  place  for  his  head  on  his  hard  pillow. 
"  If  that  is  the  way  they,  are  going  to  do  business, 
it  will  be  a  long  time  before  you  get  your  pay  for 
making  a  prisoner  of  me." 

The  boy  did  not  leave  his  blanket  the  next  morn- 
ing until  Fletcher  came  in  to  tell  him  that  breakfast 
was  ready.  He  could  hear  the  guerrillas  grumbling 
lustily  over  the  ill-luck  that  had  attended  their 
companions  the  night  before,  and  he  was  in  no 


66  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

hurry  to  mingle  with  them,  for  fear  they  might 
vent  their  spite  upon  him  in  some  way ;  but  they 
showed  no  disposition  to  do  anything  of  the  kind. 
Fletcher  looked  very  savage  and  was  not  as  talka- 
tive as  usual ;  the  men  in  his  mess  swore  a  little 
more  over  this  meal,  and  that  was  all  George  saw 
or  heard  to  indicate  that  anything  had  gone  wrong 
with  them. 

Although  the  raiders  had  been  badly  punished, 
they  were  by  no  means  disheartened.  As  soon  as 
breakfast  was  over,  they  took  fresh  horses,  and 
reinforced  by  a  dozen  or  more  companions,  set  out  to 
try  another  ford  twenty  miles  further  up  the  river. 
They  came  back  early  the  next  morning,  and  this 
time  they  were  very  jubilant,  for  they  had  met  with 
glorious  success.  They  had  brought  five  hundred 
head  of  stock  back  with  them,  and  some  unfortunate 
rancheman  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  was  ten 
thousand  dollars  poorer  than  he  had  been  a  few 
Lours  before. 

Fletcher  and  his  men  spent  two  more  nights  in 
this  way,  and  to  George's  intense  disgust,  they 
came  back  full  handed  each  time.  He  had  the 
opportunity  to  look  at  the  cattle  before  they  were 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  67 

sent  into  the  interior,  and  had  the  satisfaction  of 
seeing  that  none  of  them  bore  his  brand. 

On  the  fifth  morning  of  his  captivity,  George 
encountered  Springer  on  the  verandah.  He  had 
sought  an  interview  with  him  every  day,  but 
Springer  had  taken-  good  care  to  keep  out  of  his 
way,  because  he  knew  that  he  could  not  assist  him 
in  his  efforts  to  escape  without  running  the  risk  of 
bringing  himself  into  trouble  with  the  boss  cattle- 
thief.  On  this  particular  morning,  however,  he 
purposely  intercepted  the  boy  while  the  latter  was 
taking  his  usual  walk  around  the  court-yard.  He 
had  something  of  importance  to  say  to  him. 

"Wai,  George,  you  ain't  gone  yet,  have  you?" 
said  Springer,  after  he  had  looked  all  around  to 
make  sure  that  there  was  no  one  within  ear-shot.  ' 

"  No,  but  I  haven't  been  wasting  any  time,"  was 
the  reply.  "  I  have  learned  that  I  can  go  in  and 
out  of  the  rancho  whenever  I  please,  and  I  have 
made  a  friend  of  Silk  Stocking." 

"  Who's  that  ?  "  inquired  Springer. 

"  That  is  the  name  of  the  horse  you  raiders 
brought  away  with  you  on  the  night  you  made  the 
attack  on  our  rancho,"  replied  George.  "  I  have 
fed  him  crackers  every  day  until  he  has  learned  to 


68  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

know  me,  and  will  let  me  catch  him  any  where.  I 
got  on  his  back  last  night,  and  if  I  had  been  certain 
that  the  road  was  clear,  you  wouldn't  have  seen  me 
here  this  morning.  I  would  have  made  a  bold  dash 
for  home  and  freedom." 

"It's  just  as  well  that  you  didn't  try  it,"  said 
Springer,  hastily,  "  kase  the  road  wasn't  cl'ar. 
You  might  have  run  plump  into  Fletcher's  gang 
afore  you  knowed  it.  Now  I'll  tell  you  what's  a 
fact:  I  can't  help  you  none  only  by  giving  you  good 
advice,  an'  I  am  risking  my  life  by  doin'  that.  The 
road  will  be  clear  to-night,  an*  if  you  are  bound  to 
start  for  the  other  side  of  the  Rio,  you'd  best  do  it 
afore  you  see  the  sun  rise  agin.  Fletcher  aint  goin' 
on  no  more  raids  till  next  full  moon,  but  he's  goin' 
to  start  with  the  regiment,  bright  an'  'arly  to-mor- 
row morning,  for  our  old  camp  at  Queretaro  ;  an' 
I'll  just  tell  you  what's  a  fact,  if  you  ever  let  your- 
self be  took  so  far  into  the  country  as  that,  it  will 
be  a  long  time  afore  you  see  Texas  agin.  Fletcher 
don't  mean  no  harm  to  you,  but  thar's  fightin'  goin' 
on  down  thar,  an'  I  don't  know  what  may  happen 
.0  us." 

"  I  am  glad  you  told  me,"  said   George.     "  I'll 


LIFE   IN  THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  69 

be  off  this  very  night.     Good-by,  Springer.     Don't 
go  on  any  more  cattle  raids,  will  you  ?" 

"  I  aint  likely  to  go  on  any  more  for  a  while," 
said  Springer.  "  I  shall  be  laid  up  for  another 
month  at  least." 

He  looked  all  around  the  court  yard  to  make  sure 
that  there  was  no  one  watching  him,  and  then  cor 
dially  shook  the  hand  that  George  extended  toward 
him. 

"  If  you  had  been  engaged  in  some  honest  busi- 
ness that  night  you  would  not  have  received  those 
wounds,"  said  the  boy.  "Now,  when  you  get  well, 
cut  loose  from  such  fellows  as  these  with  whom  you 
are  now  associating,  and  turn  over  a  new  leaf. 
Good-by!" 

"  Good-by,  an'  good  luck  to  you,"  said  Springer, 
heartily. 

George  walked  slowly  across  the  court-yard, 
passed  out  of  the  gate  and  went  toward  the  place 
where  the  horses  were  feeding.  Silk  Stocking  was 
cropping  the  grass  a  little  apart  from  the  others — he 
seemed  to  be  a  high-toned  horse,  and  to  look  upon 
himself  as  something  better  than  the  rest  of  the 
drove — and  when  George  whistled  to  him  he 
promptly  raised  his  head  and  came  up  to  receive 


70  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

the  piece  of  cracker  which  the  boy  had  taken  care 
to  put  into  his  pocket  that  morning. 

"  I  don't  wonder  that  those  men  were  so  de- 
termined to  recover  possession  of  you,  old  fellow," 
said  George,  as  he  ran  his  fingers  through  the 
animal's  long  white  mane.  "  You  are  a  regular 
pet  and  as  gentle  as  you  are  handsome.  Now  don't 
go  back  on  me  when  I  come  out  to  catch  you  to- 
night, and  I  will  see  that  you  find  your  way  back 
into  the  hands  of  your  lawful  master." 

George  did  not  dare  spend  a  great  while  in  Silk 
Stocking's  company,  for  fear  that  some  of  the  guer- 
rillas might  see  him  and  suspect  something ;  so  he 
walked  slowly  toward  the  rancho,  after  seeing  him 
eat  the  cracker,  and  the  horse  began  cropping  the 
grass  again. 

The  hours  always  pass  away  slowly  when  one  is 
impatient,  and  this  was  the  longest  and  gloomiest 
day  of  George's  captivity.  He  spent  it,  as  the  most 
of  the  guerrillas  spent  all  their  unemployed  mo- 
ments, lying  at  his  ease  on  his  blanket ;  but  to  a 
boy  of  George's  active  habits  this  was  anything  but 
an  agreeable  way  of  killing  time.  He  found  an 
opportunity  during  the  day  to  secure  his  lasso, 
which  he  tied  around  his  waist,  buttoning  his  buck- 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  71 

skin  coat  over   it   so   that  it  was  concealed  from 
view. 

George  went  to  bed  at  dark,  but  of  course  he  did 
not  go  to  sleep.  For  long  hours  he  rolled  uneasily 
about  on  his  blanket,  alternating  between  hope  and 
fear,  and  wraiting  impatiently  for  the  guerrillas  to 
retire  to  their  rooms  ;  but  there  seemed  to  be  more 
than  the  usual  number  of  wakeful  and  talkative  ones 
among  them,  and  it  was  almost  midnight  before 
silence  settled  down  over  the  rancho.  Then  he  sat 
up  on  his  blanket  and  looked  about  him. 


72  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 


CHAPTER  V, 

"  HOLD    UP   THERE,  SILVER   BUTTONS  !" 

T\URING  the  time  that  George  had  been  a 
"^^^ prisoner  among  the  guerrillas,  he  had  made 
it  a  point  to  leave  the  rancho  two  or  three  times 
during  the  night,  his  object  being  to  accustom  his 
guards,  if  he  had  any,  to  seeing  him  go  and  come  at 
all  hours.  The  fact  that  no  one  had  ever  attempted 
to  interfere  with  him  in  any  way,  encouraged  the 
belief  that  no  one  ever  would  interfere  with  him ; 
but  somehow  he  felt  a  strange  sinking  at  his  heart 
as  he  arose  from  his  blanket  and  proceeded  to 
arrange  it,  so  that  one  to  have  taken  a  casual 
glance  at  it,  would  have  supposed  that  it  still 
concealed  a  human  figure. 

"  I  can't  imagine  what  is  the  matter  with  me," 
said  George,  to  himself,  as  he  moved  to  the  door 
vr  ;h  noiseless  footsteps,  and  gazed  about  the  silent 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  73 

and  deserted  court-yard.  "I  never  have  been 
stopped  while  passing  through  that  gate,  and  I 
don't  see  why  I  should  stand  so  much  in  fear  ;  f 
being  stopped  to-night.  Perhaps  it  is  because  I 
know  that  if  I  don't  escape  the  first  time  trying, 
I  never  shall.  Yes,  that  must  be  it.  Well,  I 
must  make  the  attempt  successful." 

So  saying,  George  stepped  boldly  out  of  the 
door,  and  after  assuring  himself  that  his  lasso  was 
securely  fastened  about  his  waist,  he  thrust  his 
hands  into  his  pockets  and  walked  along  with  the 
greatest  deliberation,  as  he  always  did  when  taking 
his  airings  about  the  court-yard.  But  he  did  not 
go  straight  toward  the  archway  that  formed  the 
gate.  He  drew  up  behind  the  wall  and  peeped 
cautiously  around  the  corner  of  it.  As  he  did  so 
he  drew  a  long  breath  and  his  courage  gave  away 
altogether.  There  was  a  sentinel  at  the  opposite 
end  of  the  archway.  He  was  leaning  in  an  easy 
attitude  against  the  wall,  his  feet  crossed  and  his 
hands  clasped  at  a  "parade  rest"  over  the  muzzle 
of  his  carbine.  His  sombrero  was  pushed  on  the 
back  of  his  head,  and  he  was  gazing  in  a  dreamy 
sort  of  way  toward  the  hills  that  bounded  the 
western  end  of  the  valley. 


74  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

The  officer  in  command  of  the  guerrillas  (George 
did  not  know  who  he  was,  for  since  he  had  been 
at  the  rancho  he  had  heard  orders  given  by  no- 
body except  Fletcher),  had  stationed  the  sentry 
at  the  gate  to  keep  his  men  from  straying  away 
to  visit  some  of  the  neighboring  haciendas.  He 
wanted  them  all  there  when  he  was  ready  to  begin 
the  march  for  Queretaro  in  the  morning,  and  the 
measures  he  had  taken  to  secure  their  presence 
had  shut  up  George's  only  avenue  of  escape. 

So  thought  the  prisoner,  as  he  took  another 
look  at  the  sentinel  and  walked  back  toward  his 
quarters.  He  had  scarcely  mov^  "~«y  from  the 
wall  when  a  loud  yawn  broke  the  stillness,  and  a 
moment  later  the  door  which  opened  into  the  room 
next  to  the  one  he  occupied  as  a  sleeping- apart- 
ment, was  filled  by  a  tall  figure,  who  stretched  his 
arms  and  rubbed  his  eyes  vigorously.  It  was 
Fletcher.  George  was  really  alarmed  by  this 
unexpected  encounter,  but  the  cattle-thief's  first 
words  proved  that  he  did  not  suspect  any- 
thing. 

"Hallo,  there!"  he  exclaimed,  when  he  saw  the 
boy  coming  toward  him.  "What's  the  matter 
with  you.  Can't  you  sleep?" 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  75 

"No,"  replied  George.  "I  don't  do  enough 
during  the  day  to  make  me  tired  enough  to  sleep 
at  night." 

"  You'll  have  enough  to  do  to-morrow,"  replied 
the  boss  cattle-thief,  encouragingly;  "so  you  had 
better  go  back  to  your  blanket.  We  shall  be  in 
the  saddle  at  daylight." 

"Where  are  we  going?"  asked  George,  who  was 
not  supposed  to  know  anything  of  the  contemplated 
movement  on  the  part  of  the  guerrillas. 

"Down  to  join  old  Max,"  was  the  reply. 
"Wouldn't  wonder  if  we  saw  lively  times  down 
there,  too.  They  say  that  Max  is  on  his  last  legs, 
now  that  the  Frenchmen  have  left  him ;  and  if  that 
is  the  case,  we  are  going  to  leave  him,  too,  and 
strike  hands  with  Juarez.  You  see,  there  is  going 
to  be  some  shooting  done  before  this  little  matter  is 
settled;  and  we  don't  want  to  be  found  on  the 
losing  side." 

"  It  is  no  more  than  I  should  expect  of  you," 
said  the  boy,  to  himself,  as  he  passed  on  toward  his 
own  room.  "You  joined  your  fortunes  with 
Maximilian  when  you  thought  he  was  sure  to 
succeed ;  and  stand  ready  to  desert  him  at  the  very 
time  when  he  needs  you  the 'most.  For  downright 


76  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

meanness,  commend  me  to  a  renegade  of  your 
stamp." 

But,  after  all,  Fletcher  and  his  men  were  not 
more  despicable  than  some  who  held  higher  posi- 
tions in  the  army.  One  of  Maximilian's  trusted 
native  officers,  General  Lopez,  betrayed  him ;  and 
on  the  19th  day  of  the  following  June,  he  was  led 
out  of  his  prison  at  Queretaro,  to  be  shot.  The 
contra-guerrillas  did,  indeed,  see  lively  times  at  that 
place,  being  almost  cut  to  pieces  while  they  were 
on  their  way  to  join  Juarez. 

George  afterward  heard  all  about  it  from  Springer, 
who  came  out  of  the  fight  in  safety,  and  profiting 
by  the  severe  lesson  he  had  received  at  the  hands 
of  George's  herdsman,  made  efforts  to  lead  an 
honest  and  respectable  life. 

George  did  not  forget  his  own  affairs,  while 
commenting  upon  the  perfidy  of  Fletcher  and  his 
guerrilla  companions.  While  he  was  thinking 
about  that,  he  was  preparing  to  try  another  way 
of  escape.  He  did  not  go  into  his  own  room  again, 
but  passed  on  to  the  apartment  that  served  as  a 
stable  for  his  horse,  which  had  never  been  allowed 
to  run  at  liberty  with  the  others.  It  will  be  remem- 
bered, that  Philip  had  warned  the  men  who  captured 


LIFE   IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  77 

George,  to  look  out  for  that  same  horse,  for  he  was 
very  swift;  and  if  they  allowed  him  the  least 
chance,  he  would  carry  his  master  so  far  out  of 
their  sight,  that  they  would  never  see  him  again. 
These  men  had,  in  turn,  warned  Fletcher,  and  that 
was  the  reason  the  horse  had  been  kept  confined. 
But  there  was  another  steed  about  there  that  was 
quite  as  fleet  as  Ranger,  and  which  could  be  as 
readily  caught  when  running  at  large,  and  George 
was  impatient  to  be  on  his  back. 

In  the  room  in  which  Ranger  was  secured,  was  a 
window  that  was  high  and  narrow — very  narrow, 
the  boy  thought,  as  he  looked  at  it,  and  then  took 
a  survey  of  his  broad  chest.  It  had  more  the 
appearance  of  a  port-hole  than  a  window ;  for  the 
stones  of  which  the  thick  wall  was  built,  were  laid 
at  such  an  angle,  that  the  opening  was  much  wider 
in  the  room  than  it  was  on  the  outside  of  the  build- 
ing. Fortunately,  there  were  neither  bars  nor 
window-sash  to  impede  his  movements. 

"It  will  be  hard  work,"  thought  George,  "  but  I 
must  get  through  or  go  to  Queretaro." 

He  quickly  pulled  off  his  coat,  which,  with  his 
sombrero  and  lasso,  he  thrust  through  the  window. 
Then  having  further  reduced  his  proportions  by 


78  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

removing  all  his  outer  clothing,  he  crawled  into  the 
opening,  feet  first,  and  after  a  good  deal  of  effort 
and  some  very  tight  squeezing,  he  worked  himself 
through  and  dropped  to  the  ground  on  the  out- 
side. 

To  put  on  his  clothing  again,  catch  up  his  lasso 
and  leave  the  building  out  of  sight  in  the  darkness, 
was  the  work  of  but  a  very  few  minutes.  It  took 
him  longer  to  find  the  horses,  and  he  approached 
them  with  the  greatest  caution,  for  fear  of  creating 
a  stampede  among  them  ;  but  when  he  found  them, 
his  troubles  were  over,  for  almost  the  first  one  he 
saw  was  Silk  Stocking.  The  animal  allowed  him- 
self to  be  caught,  raised  not  the  slightest  objection 
as  the  lasso  was  forced  into  his  mouth  and  tied 
about  his  lower  jaw,  and  when  the  boy  flung  him- 
self upon  his  back,  he  moved  off  without  waiting 
for  the  word. 

Now  came  the  most  dangerous  part  of  the  whole 
undertaking.  In  order  to  reach  the  road  that  led 
to  the  river,  he  was  obliged  to  pass  along  the  valley 
within  easy  gun-shot  of  the  sentry  at  the  gateway, 
who  would  certainly  have  discovered  him  had  it 
been  even  moonlight ;  but  fortunately  the  night 
was  very  dark — so  dark,  that  the  only  way  in 


LIFE   IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  79 

which  George  could  tell  when  he  reached  the  road 
was  by  listening  to  the  sound  made  by  his  horse's 
hoofs.  That  intelligent  animal  seemed  to  know 
just  what  was  expected  of  him.  He  kept  in  a 
rapid  walk  until  he  reached  the  road,  and  then  ho 
turned  into  it  without  any  guidance  from  his  rider, 
and  of  his  own  free  will  broke  into  a  gallop. 

Although  George  had  passed  along  this  road  but 
once  before,  he  had  no  fear  of  losing  his  way.  His 
bump  -of  locality  was  so  well  developed,  that  he 
could  find  in  the  darkest  of  nights  any  place  which 
he  had  once  visited,  and  while  he  trusted  to  his 
horse  to  keep  in  the  road,  he  trusted  to  his  own 
senses  to  keep  him  from  straying  off  into  the  wrong 
trail.  He  travelled  as  a  river-pilot  guides  his  vessel 
at  night — by  the  shape  of  the  trees  and  bushes  on 
each  side  of  the  way,  and  they  were  all  familiar  to 
him,  although  he  had  seen  them  but  once.  He 
stopped  occasionally  to  listen  for  sounds  of  pursuit, 
but  if  there  was  any  attempted,  those  who  were 
following  him  never  came  within  hearing. 

For  the  first  few  miles  George  kept  his  horse 
moving  along  at  an  easy  gait,  holding  his  speed 
in  reserve  for  an  emergency;  but  when  half  the 
distance  to  the  river  had  been  passed  over,  and 


80  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

Silk  Stocking,  warming  to  his  work,  showed  an 
inclination  to  go  faster,  the  boy  did  not  try  to 
check  him.  He  had  not  been  long  on  his  back 
befcre  he  told  himself  that  he  didn't  wonder  that 
Ned's  desire  to  keep  him  had  been  strong  enough 
to  get  him  into  trouble.  The  animal's  speed  was 
equal  to  his  beauty  and  docility. 

As  soon  as  George  became  satisfied  that  his 
escape  had  been  accomplished,  he  began  to  think 
of  the  future.  Where  should  he  go  and  what 
should  he  do  after  he  got  across  the  river?  His 
uncle  and  cousin  did  not  want  him  at  home  (he 
had  heard  and  experienced  enough  to  remove  all 
his  doubts  on  that  point),  and  George  was  too  high- 
spirited  to  go  where  he  was  not  welcome.  He 
knew  that  it  was  in  his  power  to  bring  about  a 
different  state  of  affairs  at  the  rancho,  and  that  he 
could  do  it  by  simply  applying  for  a  new  guardian ; 
but  his  friend  and  counsellor,  Mr.  Gilbert,  had  told 
him  that  the  change  would  have  to  be  made  by 
process  of  law,  and  George  was  afraid  that  before 
the  matter  was  settled,  some  very  damaging  dis- 
closures regarding  his  uncle's  way  of  doing  busi- 
ness would  be  brought  to  light.  It  would  never 
do,  he  thought,  to  allow  his  father's  only  brother 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  81 

to  be  disgraced,  and  if  he  permitted  him  to  stay 
there  in  charge  of  the  estate,  it  was  quite  pro- 
bable that  when  George  reached  his  majority  he 
would  step  into  a  very  small  patrimony. 

"I  don't  know  what  to  do,"  thought  the  boy, 
after  he  had  racked  his  brain  in  the  unsuccessful 
effort  to  find  a  way  out  of  the  difficulty.  "  I  must 
either  come  down  on -Uncle  John,  or  stand  quietly 
by  and  see  him  pocket  all  my  money.  I  don't  see 
why  he  and  Ned  can't  behave  themselves !  They 
will  make  enough  out  of  me  in  an  honest  way, 
according  to  the  terms  of  father's  will,  to  make 
them  independent,  and  I  do  wish  they  would  stop 
stealing  from  me  and  laying  plans  to  get  me  out  of 
the  way.  I'll  speak  to  Mr.  Gilbert  about  it." 

Silk  Stocking  might  have  made  quicker  work  of 
the  eighteen  miles  that  lay  between  the  rancho  and 
the  river,  if  his  rider  had  urged  him  to  do  it,  but 
being  allowed  to  choose  his  own  gait,  he  accom- 
plished it  in  about  two  hours  and  a  half,  so  that 
it  was  about  four  o'clock  in  the  morning  when 
George  crossed  the  ford  and  found  himself  again 
on  Texas  soil.  Feeling  perfectly  safe  from  pursuit, 
he  jogged  along  at  a  very  easy  pace,  directing  his 

course  toward   Mr.  Gilbert's  rancho.     He  did  not 
6 


82  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

know  that  Uncle  John  had  followed  Ned  to 
Brownsville,  or  rather,  he  was  not  certain  of  it, 
and  he  did  not  want  to  see  him  again,  until  he 
had  had  an  interview  with  the  only  man  in  the 
settlement  who  was  unprejudiced  enough  to  give 
him  sensible  advice. 

It  was  twenty-five  miles  to  his  friend's  rancho, 
and  before  he  had  gone  half  that  distance,  he  was 
aroused  from  a  reverie  into  which  he  had  fallen  by 
a  quick  movement  on  the  part  of  his  horse,  which 
suddenly  threw  up  his  head,  and  after  turning  his 
ears  back  as  if  he  were  listening  to  some  sound 
behind  him,  set  off  at  the  top  of  his  speed.  At 
the  same  moment  George  heard  the  muffled  sound 
of  horses'  hoofs  in  the  grass  behind  him.  That 
was  a  most  alarming  sound,  but  it  was  accompanied 
by  one  that  was  still  more  alarming — the  sharp 
crack  of  a  revolver  and  the  noise  made  by  a  bullet 
as  it  passed  through  the  air  close  by  his  side. 

"  Hold  up,  there,  Silver  Buttons !"  shouted  a 
voice  that  sounded  strangely  familiar  to  the  boy's 
ears.  "  That's  only  a  warning !  the  next  one  will 
strike  centre,  sure !" 

Believing  that  Fletcher  and  his  men  were  upon 
him,  and  that  the  time  had  come  for  the  exhibition 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  83 

of  all  the  speed  which  Silk  Stocking  had  thus  far 
held  in  reserve,  George  threw  himself  flat  upon 
his  horse's  neck,  dug  his  heels  into  his  side,  and 
looking  back  over  his  shoulder,  saw  that  he  waa 
pursued  by  two  men,  who,  by  keeping  their  nags 
in  the  long  grass  that  grew  on  each  side  of  the 
trail,  had  succeeded  in  coming  quite  close  to  him 
before  their  approach  was  discovered.  But  they 
were  not  Fletcher's  men ;  they  were  Texans. 

A  single  glance  at  them  was  enough  for  George, 
who,  seeing  one  of  the  men  raise  his  revolver  and 
take  a  steady  aim  at  his  head,  brought  himself  to 
an  upright  position,  stopped  his  horse  with  a  word 
and  faced  about.  The  man  lowered  his  revolver, 
and  he  and  his  companion  rode  up  and  scowled 
fiercely  at  George,  who  knew  who  they  were  and 
whom  they  supposed  him  to  be,  before  they  said  a 
word  to  him.  One  of  them  was  the  owner  of 
Silk  Stocking;  and  as  George  had  his  cousin's 
clothes  on,  of  course  they  supposed  him  to  be  Ned 
Ackerman,  the  boy  who  had  given  them  so  much 
trouble.  George  remembered  how  savagely  they 
had  talked  while  they  were  smoking  at  his  camp* 
fire,  that  they  had  threatened  to  snatch  Ned  so 
bald-headed  that  the  next  time  he  saw  a  stolen 


84:  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

hor^e  he  would  run  from  it,  and  he  wondtred  what 
they  would  do  to  him,  now  that  they  had  caught 
him  with  the  stolen  animal  in  his  possession.  Of 
course,  it  would  be  no  trouble  at  all  for  him  to 
prove  that  he  wasn't  Ned  Ackerman,  and  that  he 
had  never  had  anything  to  do  with  the  stolen  horse, 
if  they  would  only  give  him  the  opportunity  ;  but 
the  probability  was  that  they  would  take  vengeance 
on  him  first  and  listen  to  his  explanation  afterward, 
if  there  was  life  enough  left  in  him  to  make  it. 

There  was  another  disagreeable  thought  that 
came  into  George's  mind  while  he  was  sitting 
there  waiting  for  the  men  to  approach  (one  thinks 
rapidly  when  he  is  in  danger,  you  know),  and  it 
was  this  :  If  he  proved  that  he  wasn't  Ned  Acker- 
man, wouldn't  it  also  be  necessary  for  him  to  prove 
who  he  was  ?  And  while  he  was  doing  it,  wouldn't 
the  men  learn  that  he  had  had  something  to  do  with 
Ned's  escape  ?  They  would  certainly  be  very  angry 
at  him  for  that.  In  fact,  it  will  be  remembered  that 
while  he  was  in  Mr.  Gilbert's  library,  he  had  over 
heard  one  of  these  same  men  say,  as  he  and  his 
companion  passed  through  the  hall,  that  he  would 
like  to  get  his  hands  on  that  rascally  boy  who  had 
sent  them  so  far  out  of  their  course.  Taken 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  85 

altogether,  it  looked  as  thuigh  George  was  in  a 
fair  way  to  be  punished  both  for  what  he  did  as 
well  as  for  what  he  didn't  do. 

"  Well,  my  young  Silver  Buttons,  you  stopped 
just  in  time,"  said  one  of  the  men,  as  he  rode  up 
and  seized  the  lasso  which  served  George  for  a 
bridle.  "  If  I  had  sent  one  more  bullet  after  you, 
it  would  have  struck  something,  sure.  Get  off  that 
horse  before  I  knock  you  off.  You  have  backed 
him  for  the  last  time !" 

George  lost  not  a  moment  in  obeying  this  order. 
The  man  carried  a  loaded  riding-whip,  and  as 
he  uttered  these  words  he  wound  the  lash  about  his 
hand,  in  readiness  to  strike  the  boy  with  the  heavy 
butt,  if  he  did  not  move  on  the  instant. 

"A  pretty  chase  you  have  led  us,"  exclaimed 
the  other  horseman,  whom  we  have  heard  addressed 
as  "Joe."  "  How  did  you  get  back  from  Browns- 
ville so  quickly  ?" 

"  I  haven't  been  to  Brownsville  yet,"  answered 
George,  "  but  I  hope  to  go  there  to-morrow  or  next 
day." 

"  Perhaps  you  will,  and  then  again  perhaps  you 
won't,"  said  the  owner  of  the  stolen  horse,  who 
answered  to  the  name  of  Lowry.  "  It's  my  opin- 


86  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

ion,  that  when  we  are  through  with  you,  there 
won't  be  enough  of  you  left  to  go  any  where," 

"  Very  well,"  replied  George,  with  a  calmness 
that  surprised  himself.  "  If  you  have  made  up 
your  minds  to  that,  of  course  you  can  carry  out 
your  resolution,  for  I  haven't  the  power  to  resist 
you.  If  I  had,  I  should  use  it.  I  confess  that 
appearances  are  against  me " 

"Yes;  I  should  say  they  were,"  interrupted  Joe. 

"  But  I  can  explain  everything  to  your  satisfac- 
tion," continued  George,  "and  more  than  that,  I 
can  prove  every  statement  I  make." 

" By  whom  will  you  prove  it?" 

"  By  people  living  right  here  in  this  settlement, 
who  have  known  me  ever  since  I  was  born." 

"Wouldn't  trust  'em."  exclaimed  Mr.  Lowry, 
quickly.  "  We  know,  by  experience,  that  the  most 
of  them  are  rascals  who  are  in  league  with  you. 
One  night,  when  we  were  lost  on  the  prairie,  we 
camped  with  a  cow-boy  who  told  us  a  cock-and-a- 
bull  story  about  having  been  robbed  by  the  raiders, 
and  who  sent  us  thirty-five  miles  out  of  our  way; 
Gilbert  sent  with  us,  as  guide,  a  herdsman  who 
lost  us  again  on  purpose ;  and  finally,  we  were  met 
by  one  of  Ackerman's  servants,  who  told  us,  that 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  87 

his  employer  had  just  started  for  Palos  to  be  gone 
two  or  three  weeks,  and  that  his  son  went  with  him 
riding  this  very  horse.  We  went  in  pursuit  as 
soon  as  we  got  our  own  horses  out  of  Ackerman's 
corral;  and  we  might  have  been  riding  toward 
Palos  yet,  if  we  hadn't  been  set  right  by  a  man  of 
the  name  of  Cook.  We  knew  that  he  wouldn't 
deceive  us,  for  he  was  very  angry  at  you  for  shoot- 
ing some  of  his  cattle.  He's  the  only  white  man 
in  the  settlement." 

"  I  am  glad  to  know  that  you  have  confidence 
in  somebody,"  answered  George,  wondering  who 
that  servant  was  who  sent  Mr.  Lowry  and  his 
companion  off  toward  Palos,  "and  I  am  perfectly 
willing  to  go  to  his  rancho  with  you.  When  you 
know  all  the  circumstances  connected  with  this 
miserable  business,  you  will  not  have  so  poor  an 
opinion  of  the  people  living  in  this  settlement." 

"Well.  I  must  say  that  you  ring  a  pretty  oily 
tongue,"  said  Mr.  Lowry,  who  was  plainly  sur- 
prised at  the  ease  with  which  the  boy  expressed 
himself.  "Go  on  now,  and  explain  why  you 
didn't  give  Silk  Stocking  up  on  the  night  Joe  and 
I  came  to  your  father's  rancho  and  got  fresh 
horses  there?" 


88  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

"Because  I  wasn't  at  the  rancho  that  night, 
and  neither  was  the  horse  in  my  possession," 
answered  George. 

"You  were  there,"  exclaimed  Joe,  in  angry 
tones,  "  and  the  horse  was  in  your  possession. 
You  had  him  hitched  under  an  open  shed  close 
by  the  house,  and  you  heard  us  say  that  he  had 
been  stolen." 

"I  can  prove  that  I  never  heard  you  speak 
that  night.  I  couldn't,  for  I  was  miles  away  at- 
tending to  my  herd  of  cattle." 

Joe  seemed  ready  to  boil  over  with  rage  when 
he  heard  this,  and  his  companion  turned  white  with 
anger.  The  former  would  at  once  have  fallen 
upon  the  boy  with  his  riding-whip  if  he  had  not 
been  restrained  by  Mr.  Lowry ;  but  the  latter's 
forced  calmness  was  more  alarming  than  Joe's 
belligerent  demonstration,  for  it  told  George,  as 
plainly  as  words,  that  when  his  anger  broke  forth, 
it  would  be  all  the  more  terrible  from  being  so 
long  restrained. 

"Do  you  mean  to  tell  us  that  we  can  place 
no  dependence  upon  our  senses?"  demanded 
Mr.  Lowry,  while  an  ominous  light  shone  in  his 
eyes. 


LIFE   IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  89 

"No,  sir;  I  mean  to  tell  you  that  you  are  mis- 
taken as  to  my  identity.  On  the  night  you  got 
those  fresh  horses  I  was  at  Catfish  Tails,  watching 
my  cattle  which  had  been  stolen  from  me,  as  I 
told  you." 

"As  you  told  us!"  echoed  Joe.  "Great  Moses! 
Are  you  the  scamp  that  sent  us  to  Dickerman's 
when  we  wanted  to  go  to  Ackerman's?" 

"Hold  on,  Joe!"  said  Mr.  Lowry,  extending 
his  arm  to  interrupt  the  riding-whip  which  was 
brandished  threateningly  in  the  air.  "He  can't 
get  out  of  this  scrape  by  pretending  to  be  some- 
body else.  We  saw  him  standing  on  his  father's 
porch,  and  he  had  these  same  clothes  on,  too." 

"These  are  not  my  clothes." 

"Whose  are  they  then,  and  what  are  you  doing 
in  them?" 

"  They  belong  to  my  cousin,  Ned  Ackerrnan, 
who,  if  he  has  had  good  luck,  is  safe  in  Browns- 
ville by  this  time.  He  was  the  one  who  traded 
for  Silk  Stocking,  and  the  reason  why  he  would 
not  give  him  up,  was  because  he  was  afraid  that 
you  would  lay  violent  hands  upon  him.  I  ex- 
changed my  clothes  for  his  at  the  time  I  was 
captured  by  the  Greasers,  and  I  did  it  for  his 


90  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

protection,  little  dreaming  that  I  should  get 
myself  into  trouble  by  it.  I  knew  that  you  would 
follow  him,  and  that  if  you  came  up  with  him 
you  would  recognise  him  by  his  dress.  " 

"What  do  you  mean  by  saying  that  you  were 
captured  by  Greasers?"  asked  Joe,  whose  anger 
seemed  to  have  given  away  to  astonishment. 

"  I  mean  just  what  I  say.  I  have  been  a 
prisoner  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  since  last 
Thursday,  and  it  was  there  I  found  Silk  Stock- 
ing." 

The  ranchmen  looked  at  each  other  for  a 
moment,  and  then  broke  out  into  loud  peals  of 
laughter.  George's  story  was  too  ridiculous  for 
belief. 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT- HOUSE.  91 


CHAPTER  VI. 

GEORGE  PROVES  AN  ALIBI. 

"VTOUNG  fellow,"  exclaimed  Joe,  who  was  the 
first  to  speak.  "  I  have  often  said  that  when  I 
came  across  the  champion  liar,  I  would  give  him  my 
hat.  I  think  you  are  fairly  entitled  to  it.  Here, 
take  it !"  he  added,  pulling  off  his  sombrero  and 
extending  it  toward  George,  who  was  forced  to 
smile  in  spite  of  himself.  "  I'll  go  home  bare- 
headed !" 

"  You  are  a  good  one,  I  declare,"  remarked  Mr. 
Lcwry.  "  I  said  you  should  never  back  my  horse 
again,  but  I  think  you  have  earned  a  ride.  Jump 
on  and  come  with  us." 

Without  a  moment's  hesitation  George  swung 
himself  upon  Silk  Stocking's  back  and  rode  away 
with  the  ranchemen,  who  burst  out  into  fresh  peals 
of  laughter  every  time  they  looked  at  him. 


92  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  Do  you  know  any  more  funny  stories  ?n  asked 
Joe,  at  length. 

"I  have  only  made  a  beginning,"  answered 
George. 

"  Got  more  of  them  back,  have  you?"  exclaimed 
Mr.  .Lowry.  "  If  I  wasn't  so  mad  at  you  I  would 
let  you  go  on,  just  to  see  how  big  a  story  you  can 
tell." 

"  I  could  tell  you  one  that  would  make  you  open 
your  eyes,"  said  George,  "and  it  would  be  nothing 
but  the  truth.  But  I  know  you  wouldn't  believe  a 
word  of  it,  and  perhaps  it  would  be  better  that  you 
should  hear  it  from  somebody  besides  myself.  You 
will  give  me  a  chance  to  prove  that  I  am  not  the 
boy  you  take  me  for,  will  you  not  ?" 

"  0,  yes,"  replied  Mr.  Lowry,  who  seemed  to 
have  recovered  his  good-nature  all  of  a  sudden. 
"  We'll  give  you  all  the  chance  you  want." 

"  Then  let's  turn  off  here  to  the  right.  This  is 
my  ranche — or  rather  it  will  be  mine  if  I  live  to  be 
twenty-one  years  old — and  that  house  you  see  over 
there  was  my  home  when  my  father  was  alive." 

There  was  something  in  those  words  that  touched 
Joe's  heart.  He  looked  steadily  at  George  for  a 
moment,  arid  then  asked  in  a  much  kinder  tone 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  93 

of  voice  than  he  had  thus  far  used  in  address- 
ing him. 

"  Where  is  your  home  now  ?" 

"  I  have  none,"  replied  George  sadly.  "But  that 
is  a  part  of  my  story,  and,  as  I  said  before,  I  would 
rather  that  somebody  else  should  tell  it  to  you. 
Then  perhaps  you  will  believe  it." 

After  this  the  three  relapsed  into  silence,  and  did 
not  speak  again  until  they  rode  around  the  house  and 
drew  rein  in  front  of  the  porch.  Jake,  who  was 
acting  as  manager  of  the  ranche  during  Uncle 
John's  absence,  and  Bob,  another  herdsman,  who 
was  officiating  as  cook,  hearing  the  sound  of  their 
horses'  hoofs,  came  out  to  see  who  the  visitors  were. 
At  that  moment  George  was  just  dismounting.  The 
men  took  one  look  at  his  sombrero,  ornamented  with 
its  gaudy  cord  and  tassel,  and  at  the  patent-leather 
boots,  with  their  silver-plated  spurs,  and  were  about 
to  walk  away  with  an  exclamation  of  disgust,  when 
George  turned  his  face  toward  them.  Then  they 
uttered  ejaculations  indicative  of  the  greatest  aston- 
ishment, and  springing  forward  caught  him  in  their 
arms. 

"Why,  Mr.  George,  is  this  you?"  cried  Jake, 
when  he  had  given  the  boy  two  or  three  bear-like 


94  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL  ;    OR, 

hugs,  during  which  he  swung  him  clear  off  the  ground. 
"  It  is,  aint  it  ?  We  thought  the  Greasers  had  got 
you,  sure." 

"And  so  they  did  have  me,"  answered  George, 
after  he  had  brushed  hack  his  hair  and  replaced 
his  sombrero,  which  had  fallen  from  his  head.  "I 
have  only  just  escaped  from  them.  Now,  Jake, 
I  want  you  to  answer  a  few  questions  for  me." 

"  Heave  ahead,  Mr.  George,"  replied  Jake. 
"  Thar's  been  a  heap  of  things  goin'  on  here  since 
you've  been  away." 

"  I  don't  care  anything  about  that.  I  want  you 
to  tell  my  friends  here  who  I  am." 

"Who  you  be?"  The  herdsman  backed  away 
and  gave  the  boy  a  good  looking  over,  as  if  to 
make  sure  of  his  identity,  and  continued  almost 
indignantly  :  "  Why,  you  are  George  Ackerman, 
the  young  gentleman  who  will  some  day  own  this 
yere  ranche  an'  everything  what's  onto  it.  An'  a 
mighty  fine  piece  of  property  it  is,  too,  gents,"  he 
added,  nodding  to  the  two  horsemen,  who  had  not 
yet  dismounted.  "Worth  a  clean  forty  thousand 
a  year." 

"Never  mind  that,"  said  George,  hastily. 
"  Whose  clothes  are  these  I  have  oh?" 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  95 

"They  are  Ned  Ackerman's,"  replied  Jake, 
throwing  as  much  contempt  as  he  could  into  his 
tones.  "But  how  you  came  by  'em,  and  how  you 
can  bring  yourself  to  wear  that  feller's  duds,  beats 
my  time  all  holler.  Don't  it  your'n,  Bob?  He's 
the  chap,  gents,  Ned  is,  who  traded  for  this  very 
hoss,  an*  who  held  fast  to  him  arter  he  knowed 
that  he  had  oughter  give  him  up.  He's  the  fine 
lad  that  shot  Cook's  cattle,  too,  Ned  is.  Oh, 
he's  meaner'n — meaner'n " 

Jake  flourished  his  clenched  hand  over  his  head 
and  glared  wildly  about,  being  utterly  at  a  loss  for 
a  simile. 

"  Remember  who  he  is  and  say  nothing  hard 
against  him,"  said  George  quietly.  "He  has 
never  injured  you  in  any  way.  Was  Ned  at  home 
on  the  night  these  gentlemen  came  here  in  search 
of  Silk  Stocking?" 

"  'Course  he  was.  He  stood  right  here  on  the 
porch  an'  heard  everything  they  had  to  tell  about 
the  hoss  bein'  stole.  That's  why  I  say  he  had 
onghter  give  him  up." 

"  What  was  the  reason  he  would  not  surrender 
him?" 

"  'Cause    he    dassent,    the    coward.      He    was 


96  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

afeared  they'd  trounce  him.  An'  served  him  right 
if  you  had,  too,  gents.  That  boy  oughter  have 
some  sense  pounded  into  him." 

"  Hold  on,  Jake.  Where  was  I  on  the  night 
in  question?" 

"  You  ?  You  was  off  to  Catfish  Falls,  a'most  a 
hundred  miles  from  here,  whar  the  Greasers  jumped 
down  on  you  an'  stampeded  your  cattle." 

"  Then  they  did  rob  me  of  my  cattle,  did  they  ?" 

"Mr.  George!"  exclaimed  the  herdsman,  who 
had  been  every  moment  growing  angrier  under 
this  catechising,  of  which  he  could  not  see  the 
object,  "what  be  you  tryin'  to  get  through  your- 
self, any  how  ?" 

"Nothing  at  all.  I  only  want  you  to  answer 
my  questions.  Did  the  raiders  run  off  any  of  my 
cattle?" 

"They  run  'em  all  off;  but  Zeke,  he  put  the 
settlers  on  the  trail  an'  got  'em  all  back  agin. 
Mighty  pretty  herd  it  is,  too,  gents.  Three  hun- 
dred head  of  'em,  an'  all  fit  for  market." 

"You  remember  the  night  these  gentlemen  came 
here  to  punish  Ned,  and  you  assisted  me  to  get  him 
out  of  the  house  before  they  arrived,  do  you  not  ?" 

"I  ain't  likely  to  forget  it,"  replied  Jake,  draw- 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  97 

ing  himself  up  to  his  full  height,  and  looking 
defiantly  at  the  two  horsemen,  as  if  to  say  that 
if  he  and  George  had  done  anything  wrong  in 
assisting  Ned  in  his  extremity,  and  they  felt  like 
punishing  them  for  it,  they  (Mr.  Lowry  and  Joe) 
were  quite  welcome  to  attempt  it. 

"  Have  you  any  idea  who  it  was  that  met  these 
men  before  they  reached  the  rancho,  and  sent  them 
off  toward  Palos  on  a  wild-goose  chase  ?' 

"  I  know  who  it  was  ;  it  was  Philip." 

"  Where  was  the  horse  at  the  time  ?" 

"  He  was  across  the  Rio,  most  likely.  But  if  he 
was  there,  I  don't  know  how  you  got  him.  How- 
somever,  I  do  know,  gents,  that  he  went  off  with 
the  Greasers  on  the  night  they  jumped  down  on 
this  rancho." 

"  How  do  you  know  that  it  was  Philip  who  sent 
them  off  towards  Palos  ?" 

The  herdsman  suddenly  lost  his  defiant  attitude, 
and  became  almost  cringing. 

"I  really  don't  like  to  tell,  Mr.  George,"  said 
he,  after  making  several  ineffectual  attempts  to 
speak,  "  'cause,  it's  something  I  never  did  afc:e. 
But  I  s'pose  I'll  have  to  answer  that  question,  won't 
I  ?  Wai,  the  fact  is,  I  never  did  like  the  way  that 


98  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

chap  Philip  went  snoopin'  around  while  he  was 
here.  On  the  night  these  gents  came  to  the  rancho, 
I  seed  that  he  was  riding  about  a  good  deal  on  hoss- 
back,  an'  that  was  something  I  never  knowed  him 
to  do  afore.  I  seed  him  when  he  came  back  an' 
put  his  hoss  into  the  corral,  an'  I  seed  him,  too, 
when  he  walked  into  the  house,  an'  straight  to  the 
office  whar  Mr.  Ackerman  was.  He  went  without 
bein'  asked,  an'  that  made  me  think  that  he  was  up 
to  something  pizen  ;  so  I  crept  along  the  hall,  an' 
looked  in  at  the  key-hole.  I  didn't  see  nothing, 
though,  for  the  cunnin'  rascal  had  hung  his  hat 
over  the  key-hole ;  but  I  heard  something  an'  I — 
I  listened,  I  did,  Mr.  George.  I  never  done  it 
afore,  an'  I'll  never  do  it  agin,  if  you  don't  want 
me  to." 

"All  is  fair  in  war,"  exclaimed  Mr.  Lowry. 

He  and  his  companion  were  so  deeply  interested, 
and  so  utterly  amazed  at  what  they  heard,  that 
neither  of  them  had  spoken  before.  George  had 
proved  that  he  had  uttered  nothing  but  the  truth 
when  he  told  them  that  he  could  make  them  open 
their  eyes. 

"  What  did  you  hear  ?"  added  Mr.  Lowry. 

uWal,  gents,  in  the  first  place  I  heared  some- 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT  HOUSE.  99 

thing  private,  which  I  don't  tell  to  nobody  but  Mr. 
George,"  said  Jake ;  and  this  answer  proved  him 
to  be  a  discreet  as  well  as  a  faithful  friend.  "  In 
the  next  place  I  heared  him  tell  Mr.  Ackerman 
that  he  had  met  you  on  the  trail,  an'  sent  you  off 
towards  Palos.  In  the  next  place,  he  said  that  the 
trail  was  watched,  so't  George  couldn't  never  come 
home  agin." 

"  Who  were  watching  for  him,  and  what  was  the 
reason  they  didn't  want  him  to  come  home?"  asked 
Joe. 

"  That  was  one  of  the  private  things  you  heard, 
I  suppose  ?"  remarked  Mr.  Lowry. 

"  Sartinly,  it  was.  That's  something  I  can't  tell 
you,  gents.  After  that  Philip  went  on  to  tell  that 
he  had  hunted  up  some  Greasers  an'  put  them  on 
the  trail  of  Mr.  George,  who  had  started  to  guide 
his  cousin  to  Brownsville,  an' — an'  that's  all." 

Jake  was  about  to  add  that  Philip  had  suggested 
that  his  employer  had  better  pasture  a  thousand 
head  of  cattle  near  the  river,  so  that  they  could  be 
easily  captured  by  the  raiders,  as  Uncle  John  had 
agreed  to  do  in  case  George  was  got  out  of  the  way, 
so  that  Ned  could  claim  the  property;  but  he 
checked  himself  just  in  time. 


100  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"No,  that  ain't  all  neither,"  he  added,  after  a 
moment's  reflection.  "  I  listened  at  that  thar  key- 
hole till  Philip  opened  the  door  to  come  out,  an' 
then  I  lifted  him,  I  tell  you.  I  knocked  him  clean 
acrost  the  room,  just  to  let  him  an'  Mr.  Ackerman 
see  that  I  knowed  all  about  it.  Then,  thinkin' 
that  two  heads  was  better  than  one  in  a  furse  like 
that,  I  hunted  up  Bob,  here,  who  had  just  happened 
to  come  into  the  kitchen.  He  listened  to  what  I 
had  to  say,  an'  then  he  allowed  that  we  had  oughter 
gobble  the  varmint,  'cause  most  likely  the  settlers 
would  want  to  see  him  in  the  mornin' ;  but  when 
we  went  back  arter  him,  we  found  that  he  had 
skipped.  We  ain't  none  of  us  seed  him  since." 

George,  who  could  not  think  of  any  other 
questions  that  he  wanted  to  ask  just  then,  turned 
to  Mr.  Lowry  and  his  companions  and  said,  with  a 
smile — 

"  Now,  Mr.  Joe — I  don't  know  what  other  name 
to  call  you — I  shall  be  happy  to  take  your  hat  if 
you  still  consider  me  the  champion  liar." 

George  did  not  notice  how  quickly  Jake's  face 
and  Bob's  flushed  with  anger  when  they  heard  these 
words,  and  neither  did  the  ranchemen. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,  George,"  said  Joe,  promptly. 


LIFE  IN  THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  101 

"  I  am  sorry  I  said  it,  but  you  will  confess  that 
appearances  were  very  much  against  you." 

"  Didn't  I  say  as  much  ?"  asked  George,  in 
reply.  "  Now,  gentlemen,  get  down  and  come  into 
the  house.  As  soon  as  we  have  had  some  break- 
fast, we  will  ride  over  and  see  Mr.  Gilbert  and 
Mr.  Cook." 

"My  lad,"  said  Mr.  Lowry,  as  he  swung  him- 
self out  of  his  saddle  and  shook  George  warmly 
by  the  hand,  uwe  can  see  now  that  we  made  a 
great  mistake.  I  never  listened  to  a  more  remark- 
able story." 

"  But  it  is  the  truth,  every  word  of  it,"  roared 
the  herdsman,  as  he  brought  one  of  his  huge  fists 
down  into  his  open  hand  with  a  ringing  slap. 
"  An'  any  gent  who  don't  believe  it,  just  wants  to 
step  out  with  me  in  front  of  this  shed.  We  will 
soon  see  who's  the  champion  liar." 

uJake,  come  back  here  and  behave  yourself," 
commanded  George. 

"I  wouldn't  get  excited,  my  friend,"  said 
Mr.  Lowry.  calmly.  "  Never  mind  him,"  he 
added,  turning  to  George.  "  I  don't  blame  him.  I 
should  do  the  same  thing  myself  under  similar 
circumstances.  We  are  entirely  satisfied,  •  and 


102  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

there  is  no  necessity  of  proceeding  further  _'n  the 
matter." 

,     "  There  is  one  thing  I  forgot,  Jake,"  exclaimed 
George,  suddenly.     "  Where  is  Uncle  John  now?" 

"Gone  to  Brownsville,"  replied  the  herdsman, 
who  was  in  a  very  bad  humor.  "  As  soon  as  I 
knocked  Philip  down,  he  packed  up  an'  cleared 
himself.  I  have  since  found  out  that  he  went  over 
to  Gilbert's  and  left  money  enough  with  him  to  pay 
for  this  hoss  an'  for  the  cattle  that  were  shot." 

"  Who  is  cook  now  that  Philip  has  gone?" 

"I  am,"  said  Bob,  gruffly. 

"Well,  then,  show  us  what  you  can  do  in  that 
line,  by  serving  up  a  good  breakfast  in  a  little  less 
than  no  time,"  said  George,  paying  no  attention  to 
Bob's  black  looks.  "  I,  for  one,  shall  bring  a  sharp 
appetite  to  it.  Jake,  see  that  these  three  horses  are 
fed,  and  pick  out  a  good  one  for  me  to  ride  over  to 
Mr.  Gilbert's.  Ranger  I  shall  never  see  again.  I 
left  him  in  the  hands  of  the  guerrillas,  and  I  sup- 
pose he  is  on  his  way  to  Queretaro  before  this  time. 
Come  in,  gentlemen." 

Bob  scowled  savagely  at  George's  guests  as  they 
passed,  and  as  soon  as  he  saw  them  enter  the  hall, 
he  walked  slowly  into  the  kitchen.  His  first  move 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  103 

was  to  take  down  from  a  nail  in  the  wall  a  broad 
belt  containing  a  brace  of  navy  revolvers.  This  he 
buckled  about  his  waist,  after  which  he  began  his 
preparations  for  breakfast.  When  Jake  came  in, 
having  attended  to  the  horses  that  had  been  en- 
trusted to  his  care,  he  proceeded  to  arm  himself  in 
the  same  manner.  Then  he  threw  himself  into 
the  nearest  chair  and  assumed  a  sort  of  dogged, 
defiant  air  as  if  he  were  waiting  for  something  to 
turn  up. 

What  was  the  meaning  of  these  warlike  prepara- 
tions? Why,  one  of  the  ranchemen  had  called 
George  the  champion  liar,  and  that,  according  to 
a  Texan's  code,  was  a  mortal  offence.  Explana- 
tions and  apologies  would  not  make  amends  for  it ; 
nothing  but  a  fight  could  do  that.  Jake  and  Bob 
thought  that  the  affray  ought  to  have  come  off  at 
once ;  and  after  they  had  satisfied  George's  wounded 
honor  by  putting  a  bullet  or  two  into  each  of  the 
visitors,  then  they  would  have  invited  them  to 
breakfast,  but  not  before.  However,  the  matter 
could  be  brought  to  a  settlement  when  the  visitors 
went  away,  and  the  herdsmen  were  both  determined 
that  it  should  be  done.  But  George,  being  a 
Texan  himself  and  understanding  the  customs  of 


104  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

the  country,  was  on  the  alert.  Having  conducted 
the  ranchemen  into  the  sitting-room,  which  Uncle 
John  had  furnished  in  such  gorgeous  style,  he 
excused  himself  for  a  moment  and  hurried  into 
the  kitchen.  The  countenances  of  the  two  men 
he  found  there  lighted  up  as  he  entered,  but  fell 
again  when  George,  pointing  to  the  revolvers,  said 
quietly — 

" Pull  those  things  off!" 

"But,  Mr.  George,"  began  Jake. 

"Pull  those  things  off!"  repeated  the  boy.  "1 
know  what  you  mean  by  this  nonsense,  but  I  shall 
not  allow  my  guests  to  be  insulted  in  any  such  way. 
You'd  look  nice,  wouldn't  you,  Bob,  waiting  at 
table  with  a  brace  of  navy  revolvers  strapped  about 
your  waist?  Why,  those  men  in  there  could  use 
you  up  in  a  minute." 

"  Wai,  I'd  see  that  the  buffalo  gnats  didn't  bother 
'em  none  while  they  was  a  doin'  it,"  replied  Bob, 
sullenly. 

"  Pull  those  things  off,  I  say  !"  exclaimed  George, 
again,  "  or  else  clear  out  and  leave  me  to  get  break- 
fast alone." 

That  settled  the  matter.  The  herdsmen  reluct- 
antly obeyed  the  order,  and  when  George  had  seen 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  105 

the  revolvers  hung  up  where  they  belonged,  he  left 
the  kitchen  and  went  to  his  own  room.  He  quickly 
threw  off  his  cousin's  fancy  clothes — he  was  glad  to 
get  rid  of  them — and  having  removed  all  travel- 
stains  from  his  hands  and  face,  and  put  on  a  neat 
business-suit  and  a  pair  of  well-blacked  boots,  he 
went  back  to  his  guests  again.  The  change  in  his 
dress  made  a  great  difference  in  his  appearance, 
and  if  Ned  could  have  seen  him  now,  perhaps  he 
would  not  have  been  ashamed  of  him. 

During  the  half  hour  that  elapsed  before  Bob 
announced  that  breakfast  was  ready,  George  and 
his  visitors  chatted  as  unreservedly  and  familiarly 
as  three  friends  would  who  had  long  been  separated. 
The  ranchemen  told  of  their  exciting  race  after  the 
thief  who  had  stolen  the  horse,  described  their 
journey  to  Brownsville  and  back,  and  laughed 
over  their  numerous  failures  to  capture  the  boy  of 
whom  they  were  in  search ;  and  George,  in  return, 
explained  why  he  had  sent  them  so  far  out  of  their 
course  on  the  morning  they  left  his  camp,  and 
astonished  them  by  declaring  that  he  was  in  the 
library  on  the  night  they  came  to  Mr.  Gilbert's 
rancho,  anl  that  he  had  heard  some  of  the  threats 
they  made  concerning  him.  The  men  praised  him 


106  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

for  his  adroitness,  and  said  that  he  was  a  brave  boy 
to  risk  so  much  for  the  sake  of  his  cousin.  If  they 
had  known  just  how  he  stood  in  regard  to  that  same 
graceless  relative,  their  admiration  would  have  been 
greatly  increased. 

An  excellent  breakfast  having  been  disposed  of 
the  horses  were  brought  to  the  door,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  more  George  and  the  two  ranchemen  were 
hi  the  saddle,  and  riding  toward  Mr.  Gilbert's 
rancho.  That  gentleman  regarded  them  with  some 
uneasiness  as  they  drew  rein  and  dismounted  in 
front  of  his  porch,  but  Mr.  Lowry's  first  words 
reassured  him. 

"It  is  all  right,  sir,"  said  he,  as  he  grasped  Mr. 
Gilbert's  hand.  "We  know  all  about  it,  and  we 
beg  to  take  back  the  hard  things  we  said  in  your 
hearing  about  the  people  living  in  this  settlement. 
We  were  nicely  outwitted  by  everybody  with  whom 
we  came  in  contact ;  but,  as  I  said  before,  it  is  all 
right." 

Mr.  Gilbert  cordially  returned  Mr.  Lowry's  greet- 
ing and  Joe's,  and  then  turned  to  welcome  George. 

"You  can't  imagine  how  anxious  I  have  been 
about  you,"  said  he.  "  Jake  turned  me  out  of  bed 
to  tell  me  that  Philip  had  put  some  Greasers  on 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-IIOUSB  107 

your  trail,  and  I  was  really  afraid  that  they  might 
capture  you." 

"  So  they  did,"  exclaimed  Joe,  before  George 
could  speak.  "  If  they  hadn't  caught  him,  we 
wouldn't  have  had  Silk  Stocking  now." 

Mr.  Gilbert  opened  his  eyes  in  surprise. 

"  I  wondered  how  you  got  the  animal  back,"  said 
he,  "for  I  knew  that  he  had  gone  off  with  the 
raiders.  Come  in,  and  tell  me  all  about  it." 

The  horses  having  been  given  into  the  charge  of 
one  of  the  herdsmen,  Mr.  Gilbert  ushered  b:*  vis- 
itors into  the  library. 


108  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL ;    OR. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

A   STORMY   INTERVIEW. 

rilHIS  is  the  room,"  said  George,  seating  himself 
on  the  lounge,  while  Mr.  Lowry  and  Joe  took 
possession  of  the  easy  chairs  that  were  pointed  out 
to  them.  "  1  was  in  here  when  you  came  to  the 
rancho,  and  heard  you  say,  as  you  passed  through 
the  hall,  that  you  thought  there  was  a  regular  nest 
of  horse-thieves  at  Ackerman's;  and  that  you  would 
like  to  get  your  hands  on  that  rascally  boy  who  had 
sent  you  so  far  out  of  your  course.  While  you 
were  waiting  for  supper,  I  slipped  out,  mounted  my 
horse,  which  in  company  with  my  pack-mule  had 
made  straight  for  this  place,  when  my  cattle  were 
stampeded,  and  put  out  for  home." 

"It  was  a  pretty  sharp  trick,"  said  Joe,  ''and 
you  deserve  credit  for  the  way  in  which  you  car- 
ried it  out." 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  109 

"Now,  George,"  said  Mr.  Gilbert,  "  we  are 
ready  to  hear  your  story.  Where  have  you  been  ? 
and  what  have  you  been  doing,  since  I  last  saw 
you  ?" 

George  settled  himself  into  an  easy  position  on 
the  lounge,  and  beginning  with  the  night  on  which 
he  had  left  Mr.  Gilbert  in  so  unceremonious  a 
manner,  he  gave  a  glowing  description  of  his  adven- 
tures and  exploits  among  the  guerrillas.  The  only 
thing  he  omitted  from  his  narrative,  was  the  con- 
versation he  had  had  with  Springer  and  Fletcher 
in  regard  to  his  uncle's  plans.  The  visitors  would 
have  been  glad  to  hear  that,  for  Jake  had  told  them 
just  enough  to  excite  their  curiosity ;  but  it  was 
something  that  George  reserved  for  Mr.  Gilbert's 
private  ear. 

"  Silk  Stocking  is  in  the  hands  of  his  lawful 
owner  at  last,"  said  the  boy,  in  conclusion,  "and  as 
soon  as  Mr.  Cook  has  been  paid  for  the  cattle  that 
Ned  and  Gus  shot,  all  these  difficulties  will  be 
happily  ended." 

"  Then  they  are  ended  already,"  said  Mr.  Gil- 
bert. "  Cook  has  been  paid,  and  says  he  is  entirely 
satisfied." 


110  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  Of  course  he  doesn't  blame  me  for  anything 
that  happened,"  said  George. 

"  Well,  yes,  he  did,"  answered  Mr.  Gilbert, 
"and  so  did  all  the  rest  of  the  settlers.  They 
found  fault  with  you  for  assisting  those  boys  to 
escape.  They  said  you  had  no  business  to  do  it." 

"  Humph  !"  exclaimed  George.  "  What  do  they 
take  me  for,  I'd  like  to  know  ?  Would  any  of  them 
stand  by  and  see  a  relative  of  theirs  get  into  trouble 
and  never  lift  a  finger  to  help  him?  I  guess 
not." 

Mr.  Gilbert  shrugged  his  shoulders  by  way  of 
reply,  and  Mr.  Lowry,  after  a  few  minutes  silence, 
remarked  that  he  thought  he  and  Joe  had  better  be 
moving  toward  home.  Wouldn't  they  wait  until 
after  dinner,  which  would  be  ready  within  an  hour  ? 
No;  he  guessed  they  had  better  not.  They  had 
been  gone  a  long  time,  and  unless  they  "  showed 
up,"  pretty  soon,  their  folks  would  begin  to  worry 
about  them.  So,  in  accordance  with  their  request, 
their  horses  were  brought  to  the  door,  and  the 
ranchemen,  after  taking  leave  of  Mr.  Gilbert  and 
George,  mounted  and  rode  away. 

"  That  business  was  settled  in  a  way  I  did  not 
expect,"  said  the  former,  as  he  and  his  young  com- 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  Ill 

panion  went  back  into  the  library.  "  You  have 
made  a  friend  of  every  body  in  the  settlement  by 
the  course  you  have  pursued,  although  I  must  say, 
that  the  neighbors  were  very  angry  at  you  at  first ; 
but  Uncle  John  and  Ned — Well,  what  are  you 
going  to  do  in  regard  to  them  ?" 

George  replied  to  this  question  by  completing  the 
story  of  his  captivity  among  the  guerillas,  which 
he  did  by  describing  his  interview  with  Springer, 
and  repeating  the  conversation  he  had  had  with  the 
boss  cattle-thief.  Mr.  Gilbert  listened  in  silence, 
and  when  the  boy  ceased  speaking,  he  got  up  and 
began  pacing  the  floor. 

"  Well,  George,"  said  he,  at  length,  "you  know 
what  I  think  of  this  difficulty.  There  is  only  one 
way  out  of  it.  Your  uncle  will  not  willingly  give 
up  his  position,  and  you  must  call  upon  the  law  to 
throw  him  out,  neck  and  heels." 

"  But  if  I  should  tell  him,  in  so  many  words,  that 
1  know  all  about  his  plans,  don't  you  think  he  would 
be  more  careful  in  future?"  asked  George. 

"Beyond  a  doubt  he  would,"  replied  Mr.  Gil- 
bert ;  and  to  himself  he  added :  "  He  would  be  so 
very  careful  that  nobody  would  detect  him  in  his 
villainy  again." 


112  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL  ;    OR, 

"That  is  what  I  thought,"  said  George.  "1 
don't  want  to  turn  him  loose  in  the  world  and  send 
him  back  to  his  bookkeeping  again,  for  he  is  getting 
to  be  an  old  man.  I  can  remove  one  temptation 
from  his  path  by  keeping  out  of  his  way,  and  that  1 
have  decided  to  do.  If  I  am  ever  going  to  see  any- 
thing of  life  outside  of  Texas,  I  must  see  it  now, 
for  when  I  come  into  possession  of  the  ranche  and 
the  stock  that  belong  to  it,  I  shall  be  kept  busy." 

Mr.  Gilbert  rubbed  his  chin,  and  looked  up  at 
the  picture  that  hung  on  the  wall  over  the  lounge. 

"  I  don't  know  whether  you  will  be  kept  so  very 
busy  or  not,"  said  he,  to  himself.  u  It  is  my  opin- 
ion that  if  you  give  your  rascally  relatives  full  swing, 
you  will  have  very  little  stock  to  take  care  of." 

But  Mr.  Gilbert  did  not  give  utterance  to  this 
opinion.  He  saw  very  plainly  that  the  boy  was 
opposed  to  taking  any  legal  action  against  his  uncle, 
and  he  was  determined  that  he  would  not  try  to 
influence  him  in  the  matter.  He  had  given  his 
advice  simply  because  George  had  asked  him  for  it, 
and  the  boy  was  quite  at  liberty  to  do  as  he  pleased 
about  following  it. 

"  What  course  have  you  marked  out  for  your- 
self?" added  Mr.  Gilbert,  aloud. 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  113 

"  I  thought  I  would  leave  Texas  for  a  year  or 
two  (you  know  you  told  me  that  I  would  be  safer 
anywhere  in  the  world  than  I  am  here)  and  go  into 
business,"  replied  George. 

"  Have  you  any  idea  what  it  will  be  ?" 

"No,  sir;  I  have  not." 

"  Neither  have  I.  A  boy  who  has  spent  most  of 
his  life  in  the  saddle,  or  in  camp  taking  care  of 
cattle,  wouldn't  make  a  very  good  clerk — at  least  I 
shouldn't  want  such  a  one,  if  I  were  a  merchant — and 
your  schooling  hasn't  fitted  you  for  anything  else." 

"  I  can  keep  a  set  of  books,"  said  George,  with 
some  dignity. 

"  But  you  couldn't  stand  the  confinement.  You 
are  not  accustomed  to  it.  You  will  want  some 
active,  out-of-door  occupation." 

"  And  what  is  the  reason  I  can't  find  it  ?  There 
must  be  plenty  of  such  work  to  do." 

This  was  but  the  beginning  of  a  long  conversation 
that  George  held  with  Mr.  Gilbert  that  day,  and 
after  he  had  told  his  friend  all  his  plans,  and  listened 
to  some  good  advice,  he  mounted  his  horse  and  rode 
away  to  find  Zeke,  who  was  pasturing  his  herd  on 
Mr.  Gilbert's  grounds,  about  three  miles  from  the 
rancho.  The  honest  old  fellow  was  delighted  to 


114  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR. 

see  his  employer  once  more,  and  was  almost  over- 
whelmed with  grief  when  George  told  him  that  he 
was  going  away  to  be  gone  a  year,  and  perhaps  a 
good  deal  longer.  The  boy  gave  him  some  very 
emphatic  instructions  in  regard  to  the  management 
of  his  herd,  and  then  took  a  hurried  leave  of  him 
and  galloped  away ;  for  the  longer  he  remained  in 
Zeke's  company,  the  more  firmly  he  became  con- 
vinced that  he  was  about  to  abandon  the  only  life 
for  which  he  was  suited,  and  the  stronger  became 
his  desire  to  give  up  his  "northern  scheme,"  as 
Mr.  Gilbert  called  it,  and  settle  down  again  to  the 
business  of  herding  cattle. 

Having  already  said  good-bye  to  Mr.  Gilbert  and 
his  family,  George  did  not  return  to  that  gentle- 
man's rancho,  but  held  straight  for  home,  and 
sought  an  interview  with  Jake  and  Bob.  To  these 
faithful  men  he  also  gave  some  very  positive  orders, 
and  having  entered  into  a  sort  of  alliance  with 
them,  both  offensive  and  defensive,  and  spent  an 
hour  or  two  in  looking  over  some  books  he 
found  in  his  uncle's  safe,  he  packed  his  valise, 
mounted  his  horse  and  set  out  for  Brownsville, 
accompanied  by  a  young  herdsman  who  was  to 
bring  back  his  nag,  as  well  as  those  on  which  his 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  115 

relatives  and  Gus  Bobbins  had  made  the  same 
journey  a  few  days  before. 

His  first  hard  work,  after  reaching  his  destina- 
tion, was  to  find  Uncle  John  and  Ned,  and  there 
was  but  one  way  to  do  it.  He  visited  all  the  prin- 
cipal hotels  and  examined  the  registers.  On  one 
he  found  the  name  of  Edward  Ackerman. 

"  I  don't  know  who  he  is  or  where  he  is,"  said 
the  clerk,  when  his  attention  was  drawn  to  the  sig- 
nature. "  I  judged  by  his  appearance  that  he  was 
a  cow-boy.  He  stopped  with  us  about  an  hour  and 
then  dug  out,  taking  the  key  of  his  room  with  him 
and  leaving  his  grip-sack  behind.  I  was  under  the 
impression  that  he  had  been  doing  something 
crooked,  for  I  never  saw  him  after  two  men  came 
here  making  inquiries  about  him.  Did  he  get  in  on 
you  for  any  amount?" 

"0,  no,"  answered  George.  "He  is  square 
with  the  world — so  far  as  I  know,"  he  added,  to 
himself,  as  he  turned  and  walked  out  of  the  office. 
"  The  men  who  came  here  looking  for  him  were 
Mr.  Lowry  and  Joe.  I  saw  their  signatures  on  the 
register.  It  is  probable  that  Ned  saw  and  recog- 
nised them,  and  that  that  was  the  reason  he  '  dug 
out'  so  suddenly." 


116  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

At  the  next  hotel  at  which  he  called,  George  met 
with  better  success.  His  uncle  was  registered  as 
one  of  the  guests  of  the  house,  and  the  clerk  said 
he  had  seen  him  go  up  to  his  room  an  hour  or  so 
before,  taking  a  strange  young  gentleman  with  him. 
The  bell-boy  was  summoned,  and  George  followed 
him  up  the  stairs. 

"  A  gentleman  to  see  you,  sir,"  announced  the 
boy  ;  after  which  he  closed  the  door  and  went  back 
to  the  office,  leaving  George  standing  face  to  face 
with  his  relatives,  who  hoped  they  had  seen  him  for 
the  last  time.  The  explosion  of  a  bomb  shell  in 
their  room  would  hardly  have  caused  them  greater 
astonishment  and  alarm.  There  was  an  expression 
on  his  face  that  they  did  not  like  to  see  there. 
They  stared,  but  could  not  speak  to  him. 

"Well,  how  do  you  do?"  exclaimed  George,  as 
he  deposited  his  valise  beside  the  door  and  seated 
himself  on  the  bed,  both  the  chairs  being  occupied. 
"You  seem  surprised." 

"We  are  indeed  surprised,  most  agreeably  so," 
said  Uncle  John,  recovering  his  power  of  speech  by 
an  effort 

He  got  up  and  extended  his  hand  to  his  nephew, 
who  took  it,  but  did  not  grasp  it  with  any  cordiality. 


LIFE    IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  117 

Ned  also  came  forward  to  greet  him,  but  anybody 
could  see  that  it  was  something  he  did  not  like 
to  do. 

"  Your  cousin  told  me  that  you  were  captured  by 
the  Mexicans,  and  I  never  expected  to  see  you 
again,"  said  Uncle  John,  as  he  went  back  to  his 
chair.  ".Did  you  escape  from  them,  or  did  they 
release  you ;  or  how  did  you  get  away  ?  I  am 
anxious  to  know  all  the  particulars." 

"It  is  a  long  story,"  replied  George,  looking 
carelessly  about  the  room,  "and  I  have  more 
important  matters  to  talk  about  just  now." 

"  Have  you  any  idea  why  they  didn't  take  Ned 
and  Gus,  too  ?"  said  Uncle  John,  who  knew  ver^ 
well  what  those  "important  matters"  were  to  which 
George  referred.  "Your  cousin  has  had  one  or 
two  very  narrow  escapes  from  the  men  who  were 
hunting  for  that  stolen  horse.  Do  you  know  what 
they  would  have  done  with  him  if  they  had  caught 
him  ?  I  wonder  where  Silk  Stocking  is  now  ?" 

Uncle  John  thought,  that  by  rattling  on  in  this 
way,  he  could  divert  his  nephew's  mind ;  turn  the 
conversation  into  channels  selected  by  himself;  and 
so.  indefinitely  postpone  the  discussion  of  a  very 
disagreeable  subject.  When  George  first  entered 


118  GEORGE   AT   1HE   WHEEL;    OR, 

the  room,  Uncle  John  told  himself,  that  he  had 
come  there  "on  purpose  to  raise  a  row;"  and  he 
thought  so  now,  as  he  noticed  the  hard  lines  about 
the  boy's  mouth. 

There  was  something  coming — the  guilty  man 
was  sure  of  that — and  he  wanted  to  put  it  off  as 
long  as  he  could ;  but  George  didn't.  He  was 
waiting  patiently  for  an  opening,  and  it  was  pre- 
sented the  very  next  minute. 

"I  never  heard  of  those  cattle  thieves  taking  a 
prisoner  before."  faltered  Ned,  who  knew  that  he 
ought  to  say  something. 

" Neither  did  I;  and  they  never  would  have 
made  a  prisoner  of  me,  if  they  hadn't  been  hired 
to  do  it." 

As  George  said  this,  his  eyes  ceased  to  rove  about 
the  room,  and  rested  first  upon  Uncle  John  and 
then  upon  Ned.  The  latter  grew  as  pale  as  a  sheet 
under  his  gaze,  while  Uncle  John's  face  turned  very 
red.  George  had  dealt  them  a  stunning  blow,  and 
Uncle  John  was  the  first  to  rally  from  it. 

"  Why  do  you  look  at  me  in  that  way  ?"  he 
demanded  sharply.  "And  what  do  you  mean  to 
insinuate,  when  you  say,  that  those  men  were  hired 
to  make  a  prisoner  of  vou  ?" 


LIFE   IN    HIE    PILOT-HOUSE.  119 

"  Yes,"  said  Ned.  in  a  very  faint  voice.  "What 
do  you  mean  to  insinuate?" 

"I  insinuate  nothing!"  replied  George,  in  a  tone 
that  alarmed  his  uncle,  for  it  told  him  very  plainly 
that  the  boy  was  sure  of  his  ground.  "  I  mean  to 
tell  you,  in  language  you  can  easily  understand, 
that  I  know  all  about  it." 

"  About  it !-    About  what  ?" 

"  Uncle  John,  it  is  useless  for  you  to  feign  ignor- 
ance. You  are  to  blame  for  my  capture,  and  I 
know  it  as  well  as  you  do.  Jake  knows  it,  and  he 
knocked  Philip  down  in  your  presence  to  pay  him 
for  putting  those  cattle  thieves  on  my  trail.  Fletcher 
knows  it,  and  I  had  a  long  talk  with  him  on  the 
subject.  If  I  hadn't  escaped  from  him,  my  ranche 
would  have  been  stripped  clean.  His  plan  was  to 
hold  fast  to  me,  so  that  he  could  make  a  demand  on 
you  for  stock  whenever  he  felt  like  it.  If  you 
refused  to  comply  with  those  demands,  he  would 
have  blown  the  whole  thing  among  the  settlers.  If 
he  had  ever  done  that,  Uncle  John,  you  would  have 
been  in  more  danger  than  Ned  and  Gus  were  on  the 
night  I  took  them  out  of  the  rancho.  He  may  do 
it  yet,  for  he  has  got  as  good  a  hold  on  you  as  he 


120  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    Oil, 

wants.     By   the  way,  I  don't  see   Gus  anywhere. 
Has  he  gone  home? 

"  George !"  exclaimed  Uncle  John,  as  soon  as  he 
could  speak,  "  I  don't  understand  you  at  all.  What 
are  you  trying  to  get  at  ?  There  is  only  one  thing 
plain  to  me,  and  that  is  that  somebody  has  been 
slandering  me." 

There  was  nothing  "sharp"  in  the  tone  in  which 
these  words  were  uttered.  It  was  evident  that 
Uncle  John  was  very  badly  frightened,  although 
he  was  doing  his  best  to  keep  up  a  bold  front. 

"  Did  Springer  slander  you  when  he  told  me  that 
you  were  to  pay  Fletcher  and  his  gang  twenty 
thousand  dollars  in  stock  for  capturing  me?"  asked 
George. 

Uncle  John  settled  back  in  his  chair,  with  an  air 
which  said  that  he  had  no  patience  with  anybody 
who  could  put  faith  in  so  outrageous  a  statement, 
while  Ned,  who  began  to  tremble  all  over,  got  up 
and  walked  to  the  window.  He  could  not  bear  to 
meet  his  cousin's  eye. 

"  Of  course  he  slandered  me  if  he  told  you  that, 
and  you  insult  me  by  believing  it,"  replied  Uncle 
John.  u  I  don't  know  Springer,  and  neither  did  I 
ever  hear  of  him  before." 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  121 

"  You  have  heard  of  Fletcher,  haven't  you  ?" 

Uncle  John  replied  most  emphatically  that  he 
never  had. 

"Did  Philip  slander  you,  when  he  told  you  to 
your  face  that  you  might  as  well  tell  one  of  the 
men  to  bring  in  a  thousand  head  of  cattle  and 
pasture  them  hetween  the  rancho  and  the  river,  so 
that  they  could  be  easily  captured?"  inquired 
George. 

"  He  never  used  any  such  language  to  me." 

"  He  wasn't  knocked  down  in  your  presence, 
either,  was  he?" 

"  He  never  was.  If  such  a  thing  had  happened, 
I  should  promptly  have  discharged  the  man  who 
did  it,  for  I  will  not  allow  any  fighting  among  my 
own  servants." 

"  You  had  better  not  say  that  much  to  Jake  or 
Bob  when  you  go  home,  for  if  you  do,  they  will 
certainly  knock  you  down." 

"  George  !"  Uncle  John  almost  shouted,  "  have 
you  been  setting  the  servants  against  me  ?  If  you 
have,  you  are  guilty  of  a  most  contemptible  pro- 
ceeding." 

"  That's  the  way  to  talk  to  him  !"  exclaimed 
Ned,  whose  courage  seemed  to  be  coming  back 


122  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

to  him,  now  that  he  had  placed  himself  out  of 
reach  of  his  cousin's  searching  gaze.  "You 
had  better  go  out  of  the  room,  or  leave  off  insult- 
ing us." 

"  I  am  not  insulting  you.  I  am  telling  you  the 
truth  in  plain  language,  and  if  I  stay  in  here,  I 
shall  continue  to  do  so  until  I  have  convinced  you 
that  your  rascality  has  been  most  thoroughly  ex- 
posed." 

"  Leave  the  room  !"  roared  Ned. 

"  Very  good,"  replied  George,  rising  to  his  feet, 
and  putting  on  his  hat ;  "I  will  leave  the  room 
very  willingly,  but  I  give  you  fair  warning,  Uncle 
John,  that  if  I  do  it,  I  shall  go  straight  home  and 
begin  proceedings  against  you.  I  have  been  advised 
to  have  a  new  guardian  appointed,  and  I  begin  to 
think  it  is  the  best  thing  I  can  do." 

"'Sit  down!  sit  down!"  cried  Uncle  John,  when 
he  saw  the  boy  moving  toward  his  valise.  "  Let  us 
see  if  we  can't  straighten  things  out  to  the  satisfac- 
tion of  all  of  us." 

"  I  think  myself  th^t  you  had  better  straighten 
them  out  now,  instead  of  waiting  until  you  are 
obliged  to  do  so  before  a  court  of  law,"  said  George, 
significantly. 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  123 

"  Who  advised  you  to  have  a  new  guardian  ap- 
pointed ?''  inquired  Uncle  John. 

"  Mr.  Gilbert  did." 

"  Of  course,"  sneered  Ned.  "  He  is  down  on  us 
because  we  are  so  far  above  him.  Who  is  he,  any 
how,  but  a  low,  ignorant  herdsman,  whose  money 
entitles  him  to  the  position  he  holds  ?  What  would 
he  be  up  North?" 

"  What  were  you  up  North  ?"  asked  George,  in 
reply. 

"  I  was  a  gentleman,  and  I  am  one  now." 

"  And  Mr.  Gilbert  would  be  known  as  an  honest 
man,  no  matter  where  he  went." 

"  I  suppose  you  think  I  am  not  honest,"  said 
Uncle  John,  who,  during  this  side  sparring  had 
been  allowed  a  little  time  in  which  to  collect  his 
scattered  wits.  "You  can  carry  out  your  silly 
threat  about  that  court  of  law  just  as  soon  as  you 
please." 

If  I  do,  you  will  have  to  account  for  every  cent 
that  has  passed  through  your  hands  since  you  have 
been  my  guardian,"  returned  George. 

"I  can  do  it.  The  books  show  where  it  has 
gone." 

"  What  entry  did  you  make  in  reference  to  the 


124  GEORQE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

money  that  Ned  sent  to  Gus  Robbins  to  pay  his 
way  down  here  ?" 

UI  charged  it  to  myself,"  answered  Uncle  John, 
who  was  not  a  little  astonished  by  this  question. 
He  supposed  that  that  was  a  matter  that  George 
knew  nothing  about. 

"  What  did  you  do  with  the  ten  thousand  dollars 
you  received  for  the  herd  of  cattle  that  Mose  drove 
to  Palos  when  he  met  Gus  Robbins  there  ? 

"  I  entered  it  upon  the  cash  account  in  the  proper 
way.  The  books  show  it." 

"They  don't  show  it!"  said  George,  bluntly. 
"  They  don't  show  more  than  half  the  money  you 
have  received  since  you  have  been  on  that  ranche." 

"How  do  you  know  ?"  demanded  Uncle  John, 
starting  up  in  his  chair.  "  Look  here,  young  man  ! 
Have  you  been  prying  into  my  private  affairs  ?" 

"  I  have  been  examining  the  books  you  thought 
you  left  locked  up  in  the  safe,  if  that  is  what  you 
mean,"  replied  George,  boldly.  "  And  as  I  know 
something  about  bookkeeping,  and  all  about  the 
money  you  have  received  since  you  took  charge  of 
my  affairs,  I  was  able  to  see  that  your  accounts  are 
frauds  of  the  first  water.  Now,  Uncle  John,  I  have 
dwelt  longer  on  these  matters  than  I  intended  to 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  125 

when  I  came  up  here,  and  I  am  coming  down  to 
business.  If  you  will  promise  faithfully  that  you 
will  deal  honestly  and  fairly  by  me  from  this  time  for- 
ward, you  can  hold  your  present  position  for  five  years 
longer ;  otherwise  you  shall  not  hold  it  five  days. 
In  the  first  place,  there  must  not  be  a  single  steer 
sold  from  that  ranche  while  I  am  gone.  There  is 
no  need  of  it,  for  you  have,  or  ought  to  have,  fifty 
thousand  dollars  in  the  bank  to  draw  on.  Do  you 
promise  that  ?" 

"  I  shall  make  no  promises  or  concessions  what- 
ever," replied  Uncle  John,  whose  terror  had  given 
away  to  rage  intense  and  bitter.  "  I  shall  manage 
that  estate  in  future  as  I  have  in  the  past,  accord- 
ing to  my  own  judgment." 

"  Then  you  shall  not  manage  it  any  longer.  Your 
account  is  twenty-five  or  thirty  thousand  dollars 
short  already,  and  I  can't  stand  such  a  leak  as  that," 
said  George,  as  he  put  on  his  hat  again  and  picked 
up  his  valise.  "  I  don't  want  to  disgrace  you,  but 
I  don't  see  how  I  can  help  it ;  for  you  can  bet  your 
bottom  dollar  that  I  am  not  going  to  stand  still  and 
see  myself  robbed." 

George  walked  out  of  the  room,  banging  the  door 
behind  him,  while  Ned  threw  himself  into  his  chair 


126  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

and  looked  at  his  father  who  mopped  his  face  vigor- 
ously with  his  handkerchief,  while  his  hands  trem- 
bled so  violently  that  he  could  scarcely  control  them. 
They  had  passed  through  a  very  trying  interview. 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  127 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

LIFE  IN  THE  PILOT-HOUSE. 

"TVTOW,  I  just  want  to  know  if  anybody  ever 
heard  of  such  miserable  luck  as  I  have," 
exclaimed  Ned,  who  was  the  first  to  break  the 
silence.  "  Here  I  was,  pluming  myself  on  being 
the  owner  of  the  finest  cattle  ranche  in  Texas, 
when,  as  if  to  mock  me  and  show  me  how  all  my 
bright  hopes  are  destined  to  end,  in  walks  George, 
as  cool  as  a  cucumber,  and  looking  as  though  he 
had  never  seen  a  Greaser.  Why  in  the  world 
couldn't  they  hold  fast  to  him  after  they  got  him  ? 
My  forty  thousand  a  year  are  up  a  hollow  stump, 
and  George  knows  everything.  Did  you  hire  those 
men  to  capture  him  ?" 

"  Didn't  you  hear  me  say  that  every  word  of  his 
story  was   false  ?"   demanded   his   father,   fiercely. 


128  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  Would  I  be  likely  to  put  my  nephew's  life  in 
jeopardy  ?" 

"  If  there  is  no  truth  in  it,  I  don't  see  how  he 
came  to  hear  it  from  so  many  different  sources." 

"  And  neither  do  I  see  how  he  found  out  that 
you  sent  that  money  to  Gus  Robbins,"  said  Uncle 
John.  "  Have  you  any  idea  how  that  got  to  his 

Oil 

ears  f 

"Not  the  slightest,"  answered  Ned.  He  saw 
that  his  father  was  almost  ready  to  boil  over  with 
fury,  and  he  did  not  think  it  would  be  quite  safe  to 
acknowledge  that  it  was  through  his  own  admissions 
that  George  had  become  acquainted  with  that  little 
circumstance.  "  Gus  must  have  told  him  ;  or  it  may 
be  that  I  have  enemies  as  well  as  you.  But  what 
are  we  going  to  do  ?  That's  the  question." 

And  it  was  one  that  aroused  Uncle  John  from 
the  stupor  into  which  he  had  fallen,  and  showed  him 
the  necessity  of  prompt  and  decisive  action.  He 
jumped  from  his  chair  and  began  walking  up  and 
down  the  room. 

"  Can  George  turn  you  out  of  you  position  and 
have  somebody  appointed  in  your  place  ?"  continued 
Ned. 

"  Of  course  he.  can.     I  hoped  to   keep  him  in 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  129 

ignorance  concerning  that  fact,  but  Gilbert,  or 
some  other  busy-body,  has  been  posting  him." 

"  Then  you  had  better  make  things  straight  with 
him  and  be  quick  about  it,"  said  Ned,  growing 
frightened  again.  "  If  you  don't,  he'll  oust  you 
sure,  and  then  what  will  become  of  me — of  both  of 
us  ?  You'll  have  to  go  back  to  your  desk  again, 
and  I'll  have  to  pick  up  my  yard-stick.  Father, 
I  never  could  endure  that  sort  of  life  again.  You 
must  make  it  up  with  him  ?" 

Uncle  John  wrung  his  hands  and  groaned.  He 
was  terribly  agitated,  and  it  was  not  to  be  wondered 
at.  He  could  not  have  told  which  he  stood  the 
more  in  fear  of — punishment  at  the  hands  of  the 
angry  settlers,  who  would  be  sure,  sooner  or  later, 
to  learn  all  about  his  dealings  with  his  nephew,  or 
the  loss  of  the  management  of  his  brother's  pro- 
perty. He  could  not  bear  to  think  of  either. 

"Where  are  you  going?"  inquired  Ned,  as  his 
father  suddenly  turned  toward  the  door  and  laid  his 
hand  upon  the  knob. 

"  I  am  going  to  see  George,"  was  the  reply. 
"  It  would  never  do  to  let  him  go  back  home  feeling 
as  he  does  now,  for  you  and  I  would  never  dare  to 

show  our  faces  there  again.     I  am  going  to  try  to 
9 


130  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

reason  with   him  first,  and  if  that  has  no  effect,  I 
shall  use  ray  authority." 

"  That's  the  way  to  talk,"  exclaimed  Ned,  glee- 
fully. "  Pound  him  within  an  inch  of  his  life,  and 
if  you  want  any  help,  call  for  rne.  I  will  leave  the 
door  open  so  that  I  can  hear  you." 

Ned  had  been  on  the  very  point  of  volunteering 
to  go  with  his  father,  in  order  to  back  him  up 
during  the  coming  interview,  and  holding  himself 
in  readiness  to  assist  him  as  circumstances  might 
require ;  but  the  fear  that  the  interview  might  end 
in  a  fight,  checked  the  words  that  arose  to  his  lips. 
George's  fists  were  pretty  large  and  heavy,  and  a 
good  fair  blow  from  one  of  them  would  have  played 
sad  havoc  with  the  little  sense  that  Ned  Ackerman 
possessed. 

"  I  hardly  think  that  extreme  measures  will  be 
called  for,"  said  Uncle  John,  "  but  if  they  are,  I 
shall  use  them.  Stay  here  until  I  return." 

"  I  declare,  I  didn't  know  that  George  could  be 
so  insolent,"  thought  Ned,  as  his  father  closed  the 
door  behind  him.  "  The  idea  of  a  little  snipe  like 
him  sitting  there  and  talking  to  a  gray-headed  man 
as  he  would  talk  to  a  boy  of  his  own  age !  I 
wonder  that  he  wasn't  kicked  out  of  the  room  for  his 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  131 

impudence.  But  I  believe  that  father  is  afraid 
of  him ;  he  certainly  acted  like  it ;  and  if  he  is, 
it  proves  that  he  has  been  up  to  something.  I 
hope  he  will  lay  his  plans  with  a  little  more  skill 
next  time." 

Ned  kept  his  ear  at  the  open  door,  but  no  sounds 
came  up  from  below  to  indicate  that  his  father  had 
found  it  necessary  to  use  his  authority  in  order  to 
bring  the  refractory  George  to  his  senses.  He 
passed  a  long  and  gloomy  hour  alone  in  his  room, 
and  sometimes  his  impatience  and  suspense  in- 
creased to  such  a  degree  that  it  was  all  he  could 
do  to  keep  from  going  out  in  search  of  Uncle 
John.  When  the  latter  at  last  made  his  appear- 
ance, Ned  saw  at  a  glance  that  he  had  passed 
through  another  exciting  and  stormy  interview. 
The  perspiration  stood  on  his  forehead  in  great 
beads,  and  his  face  was  as  flushed  as  it  would  have 
been  if  he  had  just  finished  a  hotly-contested  foot- 
race with  somebody.  He  dropped  into  his  chair, 
and  drew  his  handkerchief  from  his  pocket. 

"  Now,  I  tell  you  what's  a  fact,"  said  Ned,  to 
himself;  "  if  he  has  been  trying  to  use  '  extreme 
measures,'  he  has  got  worsted  at  it;  he  has  come 
back  whipped.  Well,  why  don't  you  speak?" 


132  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

"Let  me  recover  my  breath,  won't  you?"  ex- 
claimed Uncle  John,  impatiently. 

"  Is  everything  all  right,  or  not?"  demanded 
Ned,  paying' no  attention  to  this  request.  UI  want 
to  know  the  best  or  the  worst,  at  once." 

"I  am  to  retain  my  position  as  his  guardian," 
said  Uncle  John,  ubut  he  imposes  some  hard  con- 
ditions." 

"You  didn't  agree  to  them,  of  course  ?" 

"  Of  course,  I  did.     I  couldn't  do  otherwise." 

"  Why  didn't  you  use  the  authority  you  talk  so 
much  about?" 

"  I  didn't  think  it  was  best.  I  can  do  as  I  please 
about  keeping  my  promises." 

"  So  you  can ;  I  didn't  think  of  that." 

"  If  I  find  that  George's  interests  require  me  to 
exercise  my  own  judgment,  as  I  have  done  in  the 
past,  I  shall  not  hesitate  to  do  it,"  continued  Uncle 
John,  who  could  not  bear  that  his  own  son  should 
see  him  in  his  true  character.  "  He  cannot  possibly 
foresee  every  emergency  that  may  arise." 

"  George  told  you  that  not  a  steer  was  to  be  sold 
off  the  place  while  he  was  gone"  said  Ned.  "  What 
did  he  mean  by  that  ?" 

"  He  meant  just  what  he  said.     Zeke  is  the  only 


LIFE  IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  133 

one  who  has  authority  from  George  to  sell  any 
cattle." 

"  Well,  if  that  isn't  a  pretty  state  of  affairs,  I 
wouldn't  say  so,"  exclaimed  Ned,  in  great  disgust. 
"  So  Zeke  is  put  over  you,  is  he?" 

u  Oh,  no ;  he  is  left  in  charge  of  George's  herd, 
and  when  he  wants  money,  he  is  at  liberty  to  sell 
cattle  to  get  it.  George  himself  is  going  North  to 
find  something  to  do." 

"Well,  there!"  cried  Ned,  bringing  his  hands 
together  with  a  loud  slap.  "I  have  heard  some 
good  news  at  last.  That  will  leave  us  monarchs  of 
all  we  survey,  won't  it  ?  I  will  get  rid  of  that 
Zeke  the  first  thing  I  do." 

"  How  will  you  go  to  work  ?  If  I  told  him  that 
his  services  were  no  longer  required  he  would  pay 
no  attention  to  me.  George  said  so." 

"Very  wrell;  let  him  stay;  but  when  he  comes 
after  supplies,  just  see  that  he  doesn't  get  any." 

"But  he'll  not  come  to  us;  he'll  go  to  Gilbert. 
George  arranged  all  that  before  he  left.  Then  he 
ordered  Jake  and  Bob  to  visit  every  one  of  our 
herds  and  find  out  just  how  many  cattle  there  were 
in  each  of  them.  They  are  to  send  a  report  to  him 
through  Gilbert,  and  George  says  that  when  he 


134  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

comes  home  the  number  of  cattle  he  finds  on  the 
ranche  must  correspond  with  that  report,  or  there'll 
be  trouble  between  us." 

"  Why,  father,  he  has  tied  your  hands  hard  and 
fast,"  exclaimed  Ned,  springing  from  his  chair,  and 
walking  about  the  room  in  a  state  of  great  excite- 
ment. 

"  He  thinks  he  has,"  said  Uncle  John,  quietly. 

"  I  don't  see  why  in  the  world  you  agreed  to  any 
such  degrading  terms,"  continued  Ned. 

"  I  did  it  because  it  was  that  or  the  desk  for  me, 
and  the  yard-stick  for  you,"  answered  Uncle  John. 
"But  there  are  one  or  two  contingencies  that  George 
did  not  provide  for.  Some  of  the  cattle  will  pro- 
bably be  stolen." 

This  was  said  in  so  significant  a  tone  of  voice 
that  Ned  would  have  been  dull  indeed  if  he  had 
failed  to  catch  his  father's  meaning. 

"  Then,  again,  there  are  herdsmen  in  the  country 
who  will  suit  us  much  better  than  those  we  now 
employ,  and  as  fast  as  they  turn  up  I  shall  hire 
them,  without  consulting  anybody's  wishes  except 
my  own." 

u  So  you  can,"  exclaimed  Ned,  joyfully.  "  That 
boy  has  somehow  got  the  idea  into  his  head 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  135 

that  he  is  just  a  trifle  smarter  than  anybody 
else,  but  he  will  find  that  there  are  others  in  the 
world  who  are  just  as  smart  as  he  is.  Did  he 
have  any  more  to  say  in  regard  to  those  ridicu- 
lous stories  that  somebody  has  been  circulating 
about  you  ?" 

"  He  did,  and  he  believes  them  to  be  true.  I 
assured  him  that  they  were  not,  that  I  was  perfectly 
willing  that  my  conduct  should  be  investigated  at 
any  time,  and  finally  we  shook  hands,  and  agreed  to 
let  by-gones  be  by-gones." 

"  I  should  think  you  would  have  felt  more  like 
knocking  him  down/'  said  Ned;  "I  know  I 
should." 

"  His  perverseness  was  certainly  very  trying  to 
my  patience ;  but,  after  all,  my  way  of  settling  the 
difficulty  was  the  best.  We  shall  leave  Brownsville 
for  St.  Louis  to-night ;  and  as  we  are  to  travel  in 
his  company,  I  want  you  to  be  very  guarded  in  your 
words  and  actions.  •  Everything  is  satisfactorily 
settled,  and  we  must  be  careful  to  treat  him  as 
kindly  and  considerately  as  we  did  before  he  in- 
sulted us." 

A  stranger  would  have  supposed,  from  this,  that 
Ned  and  his  father  were  the  injured  parties,  and 


GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OK, 

that  George  had  no  reason  to  complain  of  their 
treatment  of  him. 

Uncle  John  did  not  tell  all  that  happened  during 
his  second  interview  with  George.  While  he  was 
in  the  presence  of  his  son  his  pride  had  enabled  him 
to  keep  up  some  show  of  courage ;  but  when  he  was 
alone  with  his  nephew,  he  had  nothing  to  sustain 
him,  and  it  was  all  he  could  do  to  keep  from  break- 
ing down  entirely.  He  loudly  denied  every  accu- 
sation that  George  brought  against  him,  but  the  boy 
gave  him  to  understand  that  he  knew  just  what  he 
was  talking  about,  and  that  there  was  but  one  way 
in  which  Uncle  John  could  ever  regain  his  confi- 
dence. That  was  by  dealing  fairly  with  him  in  the 
future.  This  the  old  man  eagerly,  almost  abjectly, 
promised  to  do ;  but  we  have  already  seen  how 
sincere  he  was  when  he  made  those  promises. 

"I  don't  want  to  see  him  again,"  said  Ned,  "and 
neither  can  I  bear  the  thought  of  travelling  in  his 
company  as  far  as  St.  Louis.  *I  don't  see  why  you 
consented  to  any  such  arrangement.  Why  didn't 
you  let  him  go  alone,  if  he  is  so  very  anxious  to 
leave  to-night?  We  could  have  waited  until  to-mor- 
row." 

"  But  we  must  be  willing  to  do  something  for  the 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  137 

sake  of  appearances,"  replied  his  father,  who  would 
have  breathed  much  easier  himself  if  George  had 
been  a  thousand  miles  away  at  that  moment.  u  One 
reason  why  I  decided  to  go  with  him,  was  because  I 
want  to  see  him  settled  at  something  before  I  leave 
him." 

"But  just  think  how  he  will  lord  it  over  us!" 
said  Ned,  who  knew  very  well  how  he  would  have 
acted  if  he  had  been  in  his  cousin's  place.  "  He 
will  let  everybody  know  that  he  is  the  moneyed  man 
and  that  we  are  the  dependants." 

"  You  need  not  be  at  all  alarmed.  George  is 
not  that  sort  of  a  boy.  -  I'll  say  that  much  for 
him." 

Ned's  fears  on  this  score  were  entirely  set  at  rest 
when  he  met  his  cousin  at  the  supper  table.  George 
had  always  been  somewhat  reserved  in  the  presence 
of  his  relatives — he  could  not  help  feeling  that  there 
was  something  between  himself  and  them  that  kept 
them  apart — and  the  events  of  the  last  few  days  did 
not  in  the  least  widen  the  gulf  between  them.  Hav- 
ing taken  his  uncle  to  task  for  his  rascality,  and 
come  to  a  plain  understanding  with  him,  he  regarded 
all  differences  between  them  as  settled  for  ever,  and 
he  never  referred  to  them  in  any  way.  If  Mr.  Gil- 


138  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

bert  had  known  it,  he  would  have  declared  that 
George  was  utoo  confiding  for  any  use;"  and  perhaps 
we  shall  see  that  he  would  not  have  been  very  badly 
mistaken  if  he  had  pronounced  such  a  judgment 
upon  the  boy's  actions. 

The  three  left  Brownsville  that  night  for  Galves- 
ton,  at  which  place  they  boarded  a  steamer  bound 
for  New  Orleans.  They  stopped  there  a  week  in 
order  to  give  Uncle  John  and  Ned  an  opportunity 
to  see  the  sights,  and  to  drive  out  the  shell  road  to 
Lake  Pontchartrain.  Ned  and  his  father  had,  of 
course,  passed  this  way  when  they  went  to  Texas, 
but  they  were  so  impatient  to  see  the  property  of 
which  Uncle  John  was  to  have  charge,  and  to  begin 
the  spending  of  its  handsome  revenues,  that  they  had 
not  wasted  a  day  in  this  or  any  other  city  along 
their  route. 

Having  done  New  Orleans  and  vicinity  to  their 
satisfaction,  they  took  passage  for  St.  Louis  on 
board  the  steamer  General  Quitman. 

She  was  a  very  fine  and  a  very  swift  vessel 
(during  the  war  she  was  fitted  up  by  the  rebels  as 
a  cotton-clad  ram,  and  we  know,  by  experience, 
that  some  of  the  gunboats  in  the  Mississippi 
squadron  were  very  much  afraid  of  her),  and  she 


LIFE   IN    IHE   PILOT-HOUSE.  189 

left  the  miles  behind  her  at  an  astonishing  rate, 
her  loud  "exhaust"  proclaiming  her  approach  to 
the  settlers  who  lived  along  the  banks  a  league  in 
advance  of  her. 

While  the  novelty  of  this  mode  of  travelling 
lasted,  George  and  his  companions  were  at  no  loss 
to  know  what  to  do  with  themselves.  They  found 
abundant  gratification  in  sitting  on  the  wide  guards, 
enjoying  the  rapid  motion,  and  watching  the 
panorama  that  passed  so  swiftly  before  them  ;  but 
this  grew  monotonous  after  a  while,  and  then  Ned 
took  to  his  bunk :  Uncle  John  read  the  papers  and 
magazines  with  which  he  had  provided  himself 
before  starting  from  New  Orleans,  and  George, 
being  left  to  himself,  strolled  about  the  boat  to  see 
what  he  could  find  that  was  worth  looking  at.  One 
day  he  went  up  to  the  hurricane-deck,  where  he 
took  his  stand  and  watched  the  pilot  who  was  steer- 
ing the  vessel. 

"Come  in;  come  in,"  said  the  latter,  when 
he  saw  that  the  boy  was  interested  in  his  move- 
ments. 

"Thank  you,  sir.  I  didn't  know  that  you 
allowed  passengers  in  here,"  replied  George,  as  he 


140  GEORGE   AT  THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

ascended  the  steps  that  led  up  to  the  pilot-house 
door. 

"  0,  yes  we  do,  and  we  are  glad  to  have  them 
come,  for  we  get  lonely  sometimes.  Sit  down 
there,"  said  the  pilot,  pointing  to  a  high  bench  that 
was  built  against  the* after- bulkhead.  "Then  you 
can  look  out  ahead  and  on  both  sides  of  you  and  see 
everything." 

"  I  think  you  pilots  have  an  easy  way  of  making 
a  living,"  said  George,  as  he  took  possession  of  the 
bench.  "You  have  no  dirty  work  to  do  as  the 
engineers  have." 

"  That  is  very  true,"  replied  the  pilot  "  We  are 
on  duty  only  while  the  vessel  is  under  way.  As 
soon  as  we  reach  port  we  are  at  liberty  to  go  ashore 
and  spend  the  time  as  we  please,  until  the  boat  is 
ready  to  start  again.  But  it  is  not  an  easy  berth 
for  all  that.  In  fact,  I  don't  know  any  easy  way  of 
making  a  living.  You  are  a  young  man,  and  you 
don't  want  to  start  out  in  life  with  the  foolish 
notion  that  you  can  make  headway  in  the  world 
unless  you  are  willing  to  work." 

"  I  know  what  work  is,"  said  George,  with  a 
smile. 

"  What  is  your  business  ?" 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  141 

"  I  have  none  just  at  present.  I  am  looking  for 
an  opening.  I  am  from  Texas,  and  I  used  to  herd 
cattle." 

"Were  they  your  own,  or  did  they  belong  to 
somebody  else?" 

"  They  were  my  own  property." 

"There,  now!"  exclaimed  the  pilot.  "I'll  war- 
rant that  you  sold  out  your  herd  in  the  hope  of 
finding  some  easier  way  of  making  a  livelihood. 
You  will  never  find  it.  I  have  spent  some  months 
in  Texas,  and  I  know  how  those  ranchemen  live. 
They  have  nothing  to  do,  month  in  and  month  out, 
but  ride  around  on  horseback  and  keep  their  stock 
from  straying  away.  If  I  had  money  enough  I 
would  go  into  that  business  to-morrow  ;  and  if  you 
are  wise,  you  will  go  straight  back  to  it." 

"I  can't,"  replied  George,  who  told  himself  that 
after  his  new  acquaintance  had  tried  herding  unruly 
cattle  for  a  while,  and  been  caught  out  in  a  'norther 
or  two,  and  jumped  down  on  by  raiders,  he  would 
be  quite  willing  to  resume  his  place  in  the  pilot- 
house. "  Circumstances  compel  me  to  strike  out  in 
another  direction.  How  long  does  it  take  one  to 
learn  the  river,  and  how  much  does  it  cost?"  added 
George,  who  had  suddenly  taken  it  into  his  head 


142  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL  ;    OR, 

that  he  would  like  to  be  a  pilot.  It  was  an  active, 
out-of-door  occupation,  and  that  was  just  what  he 
wanted. 

"  Well,  that  depends,"  was  the  answer.  "  If 
you  have  a  good  memory  and  are  a  judge  of  water, 
you  could  learn  it  in  three  years,  or  less.  The  cost 
need  not  amount  to  any  great  sum.  If  you  have 
any  personal  friends  among  pilots,  one  of  them 
might  be  induced  to  take  you  for  nothing ;  but  a 
stranger  would  probably  charge  you  something.  In 
fact,  he  wouldn't  think  of  taking  you  as  a  i  cub 
unless  you  agreed  to  pay  him." 

"  I  don't  know  a  single  pilot,"  said  George, 
"and  I  should  be  perfectly  willing  to  pay  for 
instruction.  How  much  does  a  licensed  pilot 
receive  for  his  services  ?" 

"  That  also  depends.  If  there  is  plenty  of 
freight,  and  the  water  is  good,  they  sometimes  get 
two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  a  month." 

"Three  thousand  dollars  a  year!"  exclaimed 
George. 

"  Well — no ;  not  always.  There  is  scarcely  one 
pilot  in  ten  who  works  every  month  in  the  year. 
Unless  his  boat  is  in  some  regular  trade,  he  is  paid 
off  as  soon  as  the  trip  for  which  he  was  hired  is 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  143 

made,  and  he  remains  idle  until  he  finds  another 
job.  If  times  are  dull  and  the  water  low,  he  may 
not  find  anything  to  do  for  months  ;  for  pilots  are 
not  wanted  when  boats  are  not  running,  you  know, 
Tommy." 

"  My  name  is  George  Ackerman,"  said  the 
boy. 

"  Ah  !  I  am  delighted  to  hear  it.  My  name  is 
Black.  I  suppose  you  can  steer  a  horse  pretty 
well,  can't  you?  I  thought  so.  Do  you  think  you 
could  steer  this  boat  ?" 

"  I  am  afraid  not.     I  never  tried  it." 

"  Well,  step  up  here  and  see  what  you  can  do," 
said  Mr.  Black,  moving  away  from  the  wheel,  but 
still  keeping  his  right  hand  upon  one  of  the  spokes. 
"We  often  have  passengers  come  up  here  and  steer 
for  us.  One  of  those  boys  who  got  off  at  Natchez, 
steered  for  me  yesterday  for  over  three  hours ;  but 
then  he  is  a  pilot's  son,  and  has  made  a  good  many 
trips  up  and  down  the  river.  Don't  get  in  front  of 
the  wheel,"  he  added,  as  George  stepped  down  from 
the  bench  and  laid  his  hands  upon  the  spokes. 
"  Stand  at  the  side  of  it — so.  Now  you  have  got 
perfect  control  of  it.  Do  you  see  that  white  pole 
out  there  in  the  bow  ?  That  is  the  jack-staff,  and 


144 


OR, 


the  large  black  ball  you  see  about  half  way  up  the 
staff,  is  the  night  hawk." 

"  What  is  it  for  ?" 

"  That  is  what  we  steer  by  in  the  night." 

"  I  shouldn't  think  you  could  see  it." 

"  0  yes,  we  can.  It  shows  almost  as  plainly  as 
it  does  in  the  daytime,  and  by  keeping  one  eye  on 
it  we  can  tell  which  way  the  boat  is  swinging.  Do 
you  see  that  leaning  tree  up  there  in  the  bend? 
Well,  keep  the  jack-staff  pointed  straight  toward 
it." 

"  If  I  do  that  I  shan't  keep  the  boat  in  the 
middle  of  the  river,"  said  George. 

"  I  don't  want  you  to  keep  in  the  middle  of  the 
river.  I  want  you  to  go  where  the  water  is  the 
deepest." 

Mr.  Black  moved  away  from  the  wheel,  and 
George  had  the  swiftly-moving  boat  under  his  own 
control. 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  1'15 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   PILOT'S   GRATITUDE. 

EORGE  was  greatly  surprised  to  find  that  it 
requires  skill,  and  a  good  deal  of  it,  too,  to  do 
so  simple  a  thing  as  keeping  a  steamer  in  a  straight 
course.  Mr.  Black  had  done  it  without  the  least 
apparent  exertion,  not  unfrequently  managing  the 
wheel  with  only  one  hand,  but  George  could  not,  for 
the  life  of  him,  keep  the  jack-staff  directed  towards 
the  object  in  the  bend  that  had  been  pointed  out  to 
him.  That  leaning  tree  was  like  the  negative  pole 
of  a  magnet :  it  seemed  to  repel  rather  than  to  attract ; 
and  every  time  the  jack-staff  was  brought  to  bear 
upon  it,  the  bow  would  swing  to  one  side  or  the 
other,  and  George  could  not  hold  it  anywhere. 
Like  all  beginners,  he  kept  the  wheel  in  constant 
motion  :  but  he  was  quick  to  learn  anything  in 
which  he  was  interested,  and  it  was  not  long  before 
he  found  out  that  there  was  always  an  increased 

strain  upon  the  tiller  rope  before  the  boat  began  to 
10 


146  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

swing,  and  that  easing  the  wheel  a  spoke  or  two  did 
more  good  than  giving  it  a  round  turn.  When  he 
had  learned  this  much,  he  had  taken  the  first  step 
towards  learning  how  to  steer  a  steamboat. 

"  The  deepest  water  is  not  always  to  be  found  in 
the  middle  of  the  river,"  continued  Mr.  Black. 
"If  it  was,  what  would  be  the  use  of  pilots  ?  Any- 
body could  take  a  boat  up  or  down  the  river,  pro- 
vided he  knew  the  bells  and  could  handle  the  wheel. 
But  the  channel  is  constantly  changing,  and  to-day 
we  find  plenty  of  water  in  places  where  sand-bars 
were  high  and  dry  a  year  or  two  ago." 

"  How  do  you  know,  then,  but  that  the  channel 
we  are  now  following  may  change  over  to  the  other 
side  of  the  river  before  you  come  down  again?" 
said  George. 

"  I  don  t  know  it.  I  shouldn't  be  in  the  least 
surprised,  for  stranger  things  than  that  have  hap- 
pened. Do  you  see  that  tow-head  over  there  ?" 
inquired  Mr.  Black,  directing  the  boy's  attention  to 
a  little  grove  of  willows  that  grew  on  the  farther 
side  of  the  stream  ;  "  that's  <  Old'  river.  The  Mis- 
sissippi used  to  run  on  the  other  side  of  that  tow- 
head,  at  least  three  miles  from  where  it  runs  now. 
It  is  these  constant  changes  that  make  it  necessary 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  147 

for  us  to  have  fields-men,  who  are  willing  to  devote 
all  their  time  to  keeping  track  of  the  channel.  A 
pilot  of  twenty,  or  even  ten  years  ago,  would  find  it 
hard  work  to  take  a  boat  to  New  Orleans.  In  fact, 
I  don't  believe  that  he  could  do  it,  if  he  depended 
entirely  upon  himself.  But  we  help  one  another  all 
we  can.  For  example,  when  we  get  to  Cairo,  some 
pilot  there,  who  hasn't  been  down  the  river  for  a  few 
months,  will  ask  me  how  I  got  into  Helena  ;  there's 
a  very  bad  river  there,  you  know,  and  lots  of  bars, 
and  those  bars  are  always  on  the  move.  I'll  tell 
him  all  the  turns  I  made,  and  he  will  remember 
every  word  I  say,  and  make  the  same  turns  in  the 
darkest  of  nights.  That's*  why  I  told  you  that  a 
man  must  have  a  good  memory  to  be  a  pilot.  Now 
here  we  are  in  the  bend,  and  this  leaning  tree  will 
be  of  no  more  use  to  us  to-day.  We  must  find  some- 
thing else  to  steer  by.  Bring  her  around  easy, 
keeping  just  about  this  distance  from  the  shore — 
that's  it — now  a  little  more.  Steady  at  that.  Do 
you  see  that  log  cabin  up  there  in  the .  bight  of  the 
next  bend?  Well,  run  the  boat  right  in  at  the 
door." 

George,  who  changed  the  course  of  the  boat  very 
cleverly  in  obedience  to  these  instructions,  told  him- 


148  GEORGE    AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

self  that  he  was  learning  rapidly,  and  the  pilot 
remarked  that  he  was  doing  very  well  indeed  for 
a  boy  who  had  never  touched  a  wheel  before. 
While  he  was  thus  engaged,  Ned,  who  had  grown 
tired  of  idling  away  the  time  in  his  bunk,  sauntered 
up  to  the  hurricane-deck,  and  exhibited  the  greatest 
surprise  at  what  he  saw  when  he  glanced  toward  the 
pilot-house.  He  came  up  the  steps,  seated  himself 
on  the  elevated  bench,  and  listened  eagerly  to  the 
conversation  between  Mr.  Black  and  his  cousin. 
He  must  have  heard  something  that  interested  him, 
for  when  the  dinner-bell  rang,  and  Mr.  Black  took 
the  wheel,  after  telling  George  that  he  could  come 
up  and  steer  for  his  partaer  in  the  afternoon,  if  he 
felt  so  inclined,  Ned  hurried  off  to  hunt  up  his 
father,  whom  he  found  in  the  barber  shop. 

"  George  has  struck  something  already,"  he 
whispered,  as  he  turned  the  water  into  one  of  the 
wash-bowls,  "  and  I  -hope  from  the  bottom  of  my 
heart  that  he  will  make  the  most  of  it.  He  has 
been  steering  the  boat  all  the  morning,  and  from 
what  I  heard  him  say  to  the  pilot,  I  gained  the 
idea  that  he  has  some  intention  of  becoming  a  river 
man." 

*'  Perhaps  it  would  be  a  good  opening  for  him," 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  149 

said  Uncle  John,   burying  his  face  in  one  of  the 
towels. 

"I  am  sure  it  would,"  replied  Ned.  "It  would 
take  him  three  years  at  least  to  learn  the  river, 
and  there  are  no  vacations,  you  know." 

That  was  the  reason  why  Uncle  John  had  not 
suggested  to  George,  that  it  would  be  a  good  plan 
for  him  to  go  back  to  school,  because  there  were 
vacations ;  and  because  he  knew  that  during  those 
vacations,  George  would  be  very  likely  to  run  down 
to  Texas  to  see  how  things  were  going  there.  It 
was  Uncle  John's  desire  to  see  the  boy  settled  in 
some  business,  that  would  occupy  every  moment  of 
his  time. 

"  It  is  a  dangerous  calling,  but  a  very  honorable 
as  well  as  a  useful  one,"  added  Uncle  John.  "We 
couldn't  get  along  without  pilots,  you  know." 

"  I  heard  George  say,  that  he  would  be  willing 
to  give  fifty  dollars  a  month  to  learn  the  business," 
said  Ned. 

"  Very  well.  If  he  has  made  his  decision,  the 
want  of  money  shall  not  stand  in  his  way.  Could 
you  describe  the  pilot  to  me,  so  that  I  could  recog- 
nise him  ?" 

"  Do  yen  know  that  tall,  dark  man,  with  long 


150  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

black  whiskers  that  come  clear  down  to  his  waist, 
and  who  always  dresses  in  light  clothes?" 

'•I  believe  I  have  seen  him,"  said  Uncle  John, 
in  reply. 

This  was  all  the  conversation  that  passed  between 
Ned  and  his  father  on  this  subject,  but  it  was  enough 
to  enable  the  boy  to  understand,  that  Uncle  John 
had  marked  out  a  course  of  action  for  himself.  And 
so  he  had.  He  scraped  an  acquaintance  with  Mr. 
Black  before  he  went  to  dinner,  told  him  of  the 
relationship  that  existed  between  himself  and  the 
boy  who  had  spent  the  morning  in  the  pilot-house, 
and  had  a  long  talk  with  him  about  river  men  and 
the  dangers  of  the  life  they  led.  He  told  him,  too, 
that  he  (Uncle  John)  was  a  very  wealthy  man,  and 
quite  willing  to  indorse  any  arrangements  his 
nephew  might  be  able  to  make  with  Mr.  Black. 
This,  of  course,  increased  the  pilot's  interest  in 
George,  and  an  incident  happened  that  very  after- 
noon that  increased  it  still  more. 

Contrary  to  his  usual  custom,  George  ate  his  din- 
ner in  great  haste  that  day.  He  had  already  become 
infatuated  with  life  in  the  pilot-house,  and  he  was 
eager  to  see  more  of  it.  As  he  ran  up  the  steps 
that  led  to  the  hurricane  deck,  his  eye  chanced  to 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  151 

fall  upon  something  that  lay  close  to  the  cabin  sky- 
lights, and  under  the  shelter  of  the  projecting  roof, 
where  it  must  have  rolled  when  it  dropped  from  its 
owner's  pocket.  It  was  a  large,  black  pocket-book, 
and  if  there  was  any  faith  to  be  put  in  appearances, 
it  was  well  filled.  George  picked  it  up,  turned  it 
over  in  his  hands,  and  looked  all  around  the  deck 
to  see  if  there  was  any  body  in  sight.  As  he  did 
so,  a  rather  flashily- dressed  young  man,  who  had 
been  standing  near  the  bell,  hurried  up  to  him  with 
a  great  show  of  eagerness.  He  was  one  of  the  pas- 
sengers, and  George  had  often  bestowed  more  than 
a  passing  glance  upon  him,  for  the  reason  that  he 
had  seen  him  drinking  at  the  bar,  and  playing  cards 
in  the  cabin  for  money. 

"I  am  very  much  obliged  to  you,"  said  he, 
as  he  held  out  his  hand.  "  I  couldn't  imagine 
where  I  had  dropped  it,  and  I  thought  I  was 
ruined." 

If  the  young  man  had  hoped  to  surprise  George 
into  promptly  surrendering  the  article  he  had  found, 
he  was  doomed  to  be  disappointed.  It  is  true  that 
the  boy  was  from  the  country,  and  that  he  had  never 
had  anything  to  do  with  city  sharpers;  but  he  was 


GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  J    OR, 

pretty  smart,  for  all  that,  and  his  quick  wit  served 
him  in  the  place  of  experience. 

"  What  is  it?"  said  he,  as  he  put  his  hand  behind* 
him. 

"Why,  it  is  my  pocket-book.  It  is  a  black  one 
with  a  silver  clasp." 

"I  am  well  aware  of  that  fact,"  replied  George, 
who  knew  that  the  young  man  must  have  caught  a 
momentary  glimpse  of  the  article  in  question  while 
he  was  holding  it  in  his  hands.  "  It  is  easy  enough 
to  describe  the  outside  of  a  thing  after  you  have 
seen  it,  but  can  you  describe  the  contents  ?" 

"  Of  course  I  can.  There's  a  good  deal  of  money 
in  it." 

"How  much?" 

"  That  is  something  I  can't  tell,  for  I  am  so  care- 
less with  money,  that  I  never  keep  a  strict  account 
of  what  I  carry  about  with  me.  There  are  also 
some  papers  in  it  that  are  of  no  value  to  anybody 
except  myself." 

"  All  right,"  said  George.     "  Come  on." 

"  Where  are  you  going?" 

"  Down  to  find  the  captain.  You  can  come  with 
me  and  describe  those  papers  to  him." 

"  I  will  give  you  a  hundred  dollars  the  minute 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  153 

you  hand  over  my  property,"  said  the  young 
man. 

"  I  don't  want  your  money.  I  only  want  to  be 
sure  that  I  give  the  wallet  into  the  hands  of  its 
owner." 

As  he  said  this,  he  took  his  hand  from  behind 
him  and  put  it  into  his  pocket.  The  young  man 
had  a  fair  view  of  the  wallet,  for  George  did  not 
attempt  to  hide  it  from  his  gaze,  and  he  saw  that  it 
was  pretty  "fat."  Believing  that  its  plumpness 
was  occasioned  by  a  big  roll  of  greenbacks  which 
he  would  find  on  the  inside  in  case  he  could  get  the 
pocket-book  into  his  possession,  he  thought  he  could 
afford  to  increase  his  reward. 

"  That's  mine,"  said  he.  "  I  have  carried  it  for 
years,  and  I  would  recognise  it  among  a  thousand. 
Hand  it  over  here,  without  any  more  fooling,  and  I 
will  give  you  two  hundred  dollars  to  reward  you  for 
your  honesty.  Just  think  of  it !  That  is  a  big 
sum  for  a  boy  like  you  to  own." 

"I  don't  want  your  money,"  repeated  George. 
"  Whenever  you  get  ready  to  prove  the  contents  of 
this  pocket-book,  you  can  go  to  the  old  man  to  do  it." 

So  saying  he  ran  down  the  stairs,  paying  no  heed 
to  the  protests  of  the  young  man,  who  increased  hia 


154  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

offer  of  reward  to  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  and 
turning  into  the  cabin  found  the  officer  of  whom  he 
was  in  search  just  rising  from  the  table. 

"I  have  found  something,  sir."  said  he,  "and  I 
would  thank  you  to  take  charge  of  it  until  the 
owner  calls  upon  you  for  it." 

He  handed  out  the  pocket-book,  as  he  spoke,  and 
the  captain  at  once  opened  it  to  see  if  he  could  find 
anything  to  indicate  who  the  owner  was. 

"  It  belongs  to  somebody  who  is  pretty  well 
fixed,"  said  he,  at  length.  "  There's  a  big  roll  of 
bills  here,  as  well  as — Hallo !  Jerry  Black,"  he 
exclaimed,  pulling  out  a  card  and  reading  the  name 
that  was  written  upon  it.  "  He  is  one  of  my  pilots 
— the  man  I  saw  you  steering  for  this  morning. 
He  will  be  glad  to  remember  you  for  this,  for  you 
have  placed  him  under  very  heavy  obligations.  I 
say  it  knowing  something  of  his  circumstances.  If 
you  are  not  afraid  to  trust  me  with  it,  I  will  give  it 
to  him  as  soon  as  he  awakes.  He  has  gone  to  bed 
for  the  afternoon." 

When  George  ascended  to  the  hurricane  deck 
again  he  looked  every  where  for  the  young  man  who 
had  laid  claim  to  the  lost  pocket-book,  but  he  was 
not  to  be  seen.  The  boy  had  said  nothing  to  the 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  155 

captain  about  that  little  affair,  because  he  did  not 
want  to  get  the  would-be  swindler  into  trouble.  He 
had  easily  foiled  him  in  his  attempt  to  cheat  Mr. 
Black  out  of  his  property,  and  that  was  the  end  of 
the  matter  so  far  as  George  was  concerned.  When 
he  entered  the  pilot-house  he  found  there  a  new 
man,  who  greeted  him  cordially. 

"  So  you're  the  boy  that  wants  to  be  a  pilot,  are 
you?"  said  he,  "Jerry  spoke  to  me  about  you. 
Come  on,  and  let  us  see  what  you  can  do." 

George  had  the  boat  under  his  charge  almost  all 
that  afternoon.  About  four  o'clock  Mr.  Black 
suddenly  mounted  the  steps.  His  face  was  very 
pale  and  he  looked  as  though  he  had  lost  everything 
on  earth  that  was  worth  living  for. 

"What's  the  matter?  exclaimed  his  partner,  as 
the  owner  of  the  lost  pocket-book  threw  himself 
wearily  down  upon  the  bench.  "  Are  you  sick." 

"Yes,  sick  at  heart.  I  am  a  used-up  man, 
Sam,"  replied  Mr.  Black.  "My  wife  and  children 
will  lose  the  roof  that  shelters  them,  and  I  shall  be 
turned  out  to  begin  the  world  again,  as  I  began  it 
thirty  years  ago,  with  empty  hands." 

"You  don't  mean  to  tell  me  that  you  have  lost 
it?"  exclaimed  Sam. 


156 

"Yes,  I  do." 

"  Then  what  in  the  name  of  sense  are  you  stay- 
ing in  here  for  ?  Stir  around  and  make  a  fuss  about 
it.  If  you  dropped  it  on  the  boat,  it  may  have 
fallen  into  the  hands  of  some  honest  person." 

"  And  so  it  has,"  cried  George,  from  his  place  at 
the  wheel.  "  The  old  man's  got  it." 

George  thought  that  since  he  was  acting  as  a 
pilot,  he  ought  to  use  a  pilot's  language,  and  that 
was  the  reason  he  called  the  captain  the  "  old 
man." 

"  How  do  you  know  that  ?"  demanded  Mr. 
Black  and  Sam,  in  one  breath. 

"  I  saw  him  have  it — it  was  a  black  pocket-book 
with  a  silver  clasp — and  I  heard  him  read  the  name 
of  Jerry  Black  from  a  card  he  took  out  of  it." 

The  owner  of  that  name  jumped  off  the  bench, 
went  through  the  door  like  a  shot,  and  disappeared 
down  the  stairs.  He  wrent  straight  to  the  captain, 
who  handed  out  his  property  without  waiting  to  be 
asked  for  it,  at  the  same  time  telling  the  pilot  who 
it  was  that  had  found  it  and  given  it  into  his  keep- 
ing. Mr.  Black  started  for  the  pilot-house  to  thank 
George  for  the  favor  he  had  rendered  him,  and  on 
the  guards  he  ran  against  Uncle  John. 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  157 

"  General,"  said  he,  acting  upon  an  idea  that 
suddenly  shot  through  his  mind,  "  may  I  have  a 
word  with  you?" 

Almost  everybody  of  any  prominence  in  the 
South  answers  to  some  military  or  judicial  title.  If 
he  is  pretty  well  to  do  in  the  world,  he  is  a  major; 
if  he  is  very  well  to  do,  he  is  a  judge  or  a  colonel ; 
and  if  he  is  wealthy,  he  bears  the  dignified  title  of 
general.  Uncle  John  was  flattered  by  this  show  of 
respect,  and  announced  that  he  was  quite  ready  to 
hear  what  Mr.  Black  had  to  say  to  him. 

"  General,"  said  the  pilot,  slapping  the  recovered 
pocket-book  into  his  open  palm.  u  I  owe  that 
nephew  of  yours  something.  He  found  this  wallet 
that  I  had  somehow  lost  out  of  my  pocket.  It  con- 
tains fifteen  hundred  dollars  that  I  borrowed  in  New 
Orleans  to  pay  off  the  mortgage  on  my  house,  and 
the  receipts  for  all  the  money  I  have  paid  on  that 
mortgage.  If  I  had  lost  the  money,  my  house 
would  have  been  sold  over  the  head  of  my  wife, 
who  is  an  invalid,  and  who  could  never  survive  the 
loss  of  the  home  for  which  we  have  both  worked  so 
hard.  My  property  is  mortgaged  to  a  sharper  who 
would  foreclose  in  a  minute  in  order  to  gain  posses- 
sion of  it." 


158  GEORGE   AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

"  Well,  sir,"  said  Uncle  John,  with  the  dignity 
becoming  his  newly-acquired  title.  "  What  has  my 
nephew  to  do  with  it?" 

"  He  has  this  much  to  do  with  it,  or,  rather,  I 
have  this  much  to  do  with  him :  I  want  to  make 
him  some  return  for  the  service  he  has  rendered  me, 
and  I  don't  know  how  to  go  about  it.  You  say  that 
the  boy  is  rich,  and  that  he  will  some  day  be  richer, 
and  of  course,  under  the  circumstances,  I  couldn't 
think  of  offering  him  money." 

"  Certainly  not,"  said  Uncle  John.  "  He  doesn't 
need  it.  He  can  call  upon  me  for  all  he  wants. 
There  is  only  one  way  in  which  you  can  help  him, 
and  that  is  by  making  a  pilot  of  him." 

"  I  should  be  glad  to  do  it,"  said  Mr.  Black, 
"but  I  thought  I  had  better  speak  to  you  before 
saying  anything  to  him  about  it." 

"  0,  my  consent  is  not  necessary,"  replied  Uncle 
John.  "  The  boy  has  always  been  his  own  master, 
and  I  suppose  he  always  will  be." 

"But  if  he  is  so  well  off,  I  don't  see  why  he 
should  want  to  risk  life  and  limb  by  running  on  the 
river,"  said  Mr.  Black. 

"  Riches  sometimes  take  to  themselves  wings  and 
fly  away,  you  know.  No  matter  how  much  money 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  159 

a  young  man  may  be  worth,  or  how  much  more  he 
may  have  in  prospect,  he  ought  to  be  made  to  learn 
some  useful  trade  or  business  that  will  enable  him 
to  earn  a  living  for  himself,  if  circumstances  com- 
pel him  to  do  so.  That  was  his  father's  doctrine 
and  it  is  mine,  too." 

"And  a  very  good  doctrine  it  is,"  said  Mr. 
Black. 

"  I  repeat,  that  I  stand  ready  to  back  up,  with 
money,  if  money  is  required,  any  bargain  that  you 
may  make  with  my  nephew."  continued  Uncle  John. 
"  But  I  want  you  and  him  to  understand  one  thing 
very  distinctly ;  if  George  takes  up  this  business 
of  piloting,  he  must  stick  to  it  until  he  makes  him- 
self master  of  it.  If  he  can't  learn  the  river  in 
three  years,  I  want  you  to  keep  him  six.  I  don't 
believe  in  doing  things  by  halves." 

"  Neither  do  I.  A  poor  pilot  is  worse  than  none, 
for  he  endangers  every  boat  and  cargo  that  are 
placed  under  his  care.  George  seems  to  take  to  the 
business  naturally ;  and  if  he  will  only  stay  with 
me,  I  will  make  a  first-class " 

"  If  he  goes  into  it  at  all,  he  must  stay  with 
you !"  said  Uncle  John,  emphatically.  "  I  want 
an  agreement  to  that  effect,  made  between  him  and 


160  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

you.  You  need  not  say,  however,  that  I  suggested 
the  idea  to  you.  Speak  for  yourself,  but  not  for 
me." 

"All  right,  general,"  said  Mr.  Black,  as  he 
turned  toward  the  stairs,  "  I'll  bear  it  in  mind." 

"  0,  don't  I  hope  he  will  take  it,  though !" 
exclaimed  Ned,  who  had  stood  a  little  apart  from 
his  father,  but  still  quite  near  enough  to  him  to 
catch  every  word  of  the  conversation.  "  I  wonder 
if  I  could  say  anything  that  would  induce  him  to  do 
so?" 

"Probably  not,"  answered  his  father.  "  George 
has  somehow  got  hold  of  the  idea,  that  we  don't 
want  him  near  us — he  told  me  so  in  plain  language 
during  our  second  interview  at  Brownsville — and 
you  might  influence  him  the  wrong  way." 

That  was  something  Ned  did  not  want  to  do,  and 
so  he  wisely  resolved  that  he  would  say  nothing  to 
his  cousin  on  the  subject.  Knowing  that  George 
was  in  the  pilot-house,  he  hung  around  the  foot  of 
the  stairs  all  the  afternoon,  waiting  to  hear  what  he 
would  have  to  say  to  Uncle  John  when  he  came 
down. 

Mr.  Black  returned  to  the  pilot-house,  looking 
very  unlike  the  pale,  discouraged  man  who  had 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  161 

gone  in  there  a  few  minutes  before.  He  carried  his 
pocket-book  in  his  hand,  and  slammed  it  down  upon 
the  bench  with  a  triumphant  air. 

"  George,"  said  he,  "let  Sam  steer  the  boat,  and 
you  come  and  sit  down  here.  I  want  to  talk  to 
you." 

The  boy  reluctantly  gave  up  his  place  at  the 
wheel ;  and  after  Mr.  Black  had  shaken  him  warmly 
by  the  hand,  and  told  him  how  deeply  he  was 
indebted  to  him  for  the  recovery  of  his  money  and 
receipts,  he  listened  while  George  described  how 
he  had  found  the  pocket-book ;  and  then  he  drew 
him  to  a  seat  on  the  bench. 

"  If  you  really  want  to  be  a  pilot,  I  will  take  you 
with  me  as  a  cub,  free  of  all  expenses,  except  your 
clothes,  which  you  will  have  to  provide  for  your- 
self," said  he.  "That  is  customary,  you  know. 
That  is  the  only  way  in  which  I  can  repay  you." 

"  I  hope  you  don't  think  I  want  to  be  paid  for 
being  honest,"  said  George. 

"  Certainly  not ;  but  still  we  always  like  to  show 
our  gratitude  to  those  who  have  done  us  a  service. 
What  do  you  say  ?" 

This  brought  the  matter  squarely  home  to  George, 

who  did  not  know  what  to  say.     He  had  never  in 
11 


162  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

his  life  thought  of  being  a  pilot  until  that  morning, 
and  all  the  ideas  he  had  of  the  business,  he  had 
gained  during  the  few  hours  he  had  spent  in  the 
company  of  Mr.  Black  and  his  partner.  He  had 
only  seen  the  sunny  side  of  it;  of  its  trials  and 
perplexities  he  knew  nothing.  He  tried  to  obtain 
some  information  regarding  them  during  the  long 
conversation  that  followed  Mr.  Black's  proposition, 
and  before  it  was  ended  he  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  unless  his  new  friends  told  some  greatly  exag- 
gerated stories,  there  were  not  so  many  difficulties 
and  obstacles  in  the  way  of  a  cub-pilot,  as  there 
were  in  the  path  of  him  who  was  ambitious  to 
become  a  successful  cattle  raiser.  Something  defi- 
nite must  have  been  decided  upon,  for  when  the 
supper  bell  rang,  and  Mr.  Black  and  George 
descended  to  the  boiler-deck,  Ned  said  to  himself, 
after  taking  one  look  at  his  cousin's  face : 

"  He's  done  it !  He's  done  it,  as  sure  as  the 
world,  and  we  are  well  rid  of  his  hateful  presence 
for  long  months  to  come." 

And  the  sequel  proved  that  Ned  was  not  far  from 
right. 

When  George  had  eaten  his  supper  he  drew  a 
bee-line  for  the  pilot-house.  He  saw  but  one  person 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  163 

on  the  boiler-deck,  and  that  was  the  young  man 
who  had  tried  to  swindle  him  out  of  Mr.  Black's 
money.  George  thought  that  if  he  had  been  guilty 
of  an  act  of  that  kind  he  would  have  gone  off  some- 
where and  hidden  himself;  but  the  young  man 
held  his  head  up  and  looked  as  honest  as  anybody. 

"  Well,"  said  he,  "  I  didn't  succeed  in  fooling 
you,  did  I  ?  I  only  wanted  to  try  you.  you  know. 
Have  you  found  the  owner  yet  ?" 

George  replied  that  he  had. 

"  I  suppose  he  did  the  handsome  thing  by  you  ?" 
said  the  young  man,  in  an  inquiring  tone.  "  I 
know  I  should  if  it  had  been  mine." 

"  I  am  entirely  satisfied  with  the  reward  I 
received,"  replied  George. 

"  Was  there  much  in  it?" 

"  Fifteen  hundred  dollars,  I  believe,  and  papers 
worth  twice  that  amount." 

The  young  man's  countenance  fell  at  once.  He 
turned  and  walked  away,  while  George  ran  up  the 
stairs  that  led  to  the  hurricane-deck. 

"  Fifteen  hundred  dollars,  and  papers  worth 
twice  that  amount,"  repeated  the  young  man,  as  he 
leaned  upon  the  rail  and  looked  down  into  the  water. 
"  That  would  have  set  me  square  with  my  employer, 


164  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

and  got  me  out  of  a  scrape  that  I  am  sure  is  going 
to  end  in  something  serious,  sooner  or  later.  I 
have  lost  a  lot  of  Clayton's  money  at  poker,  and 
how  I  am  going  to  replace  it,  I  don't  know.  Why 
couldn't  I  have  been  lucky  enough  to  find  that 
pocket-book  ?  But  I  never  have  luck  except  in  one 
way :  I  am  always  able  to  get  even  with  those  who 
go  back  on  me,  and  if  I  ever  have  the  chance  to 
make  this  young  snipe  feel  as  miserable  as  I  do  this 
moment,  how  quickly  I'll  jump  at  it." 

The  opportunity  he  wished  for  presented  itself 
after  a  while,  and  we  shall  see  what  use  the  young 
man  made  of  it. 


LIFE  IN  THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  165 


CHAPTER  X. 

TONY  RICHARDSON. 

A  NTHONY,  why  didn't  you  do  this  during 
school  hours  ?" 

The  speaker  was  Mr.  Bliss,  the  principal  of  one 
of  the  St.  Louis  grammar  schools.  He  leaned 
back  in  his  chair  and  looked  at  a  young  fellow  about 
sixteen  years  of  age,  who  stood  in  front  of  the 
rostrum  with  his  eyes  fastened  upon  a  dog's-eared 
algebra  he  held  in  his  had.  This  was  Tony  Richard- 
son, of  whom  we  had  something  to  say  in  the  first 
volume  of  this  series,  and  he  was  the  only  son  of 
one  of  the  wealthiest  steamboat  owners  in  the 
city. 

"  Don't  you  think  this  thing  is  getting  to  be  a 
little  too  monotonous?"  continued  the  principal. 
"  This  makes  the  third  time  that  you  have  been 


166 

kept  after  school  this  week  for  coming  to  the  recita- 
tion-seat unprepared." 

"  My  head  is  so  thick  I  can't  learn  figures," 
replied  Tony.  "  It  seems  to  run  in  the  family.  I 
have  heard  my  father  say  that  he  was  the  poorest 
scholar  in  his  class,  so  far  as  mathematics  were  con- 
cerned. No  matter  how  hard  he  studied,  he  couldn't 
get  his  lesson." 

"  But  the  trouble  with  you  is,  you  do  not  study 
unless  you  are  obliged  to  do  so,"  answered  Mr. 
Bliss.  "  To  be  candid  with  you,  Anthony,  I  think 
you  have  fallen  into  the  way  of  allowing  your  mind 
to  wander  off  to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  when  it 
should  be  kept  right  hero  in  the  school-room  and 
concentrated  on  your  books.  That  is  a  most  ruin- 
ous habit,  and  you  would  do  well  to  break  it  off  at 
once.  You  have  committed  this  lesson  in  ten 
minutes,  simply  because  you  knew  that  you  would 
be  required  to  do  so  before  you  could  go  home. 
You  could  have  mastered  it  in  the  same  length  of 
time  during  school  hours,  if  you  had  set  about  it  in 
earnest.  Now,  see  if  you  can't  give  a  better 
account  of  yourself  in  future.  Try  it  for  one  short 
•week — for  your  father's  sake,  if  you  won't  try  it 
for  your  own.  That  will  do." 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  167 

aFor  my  father's  sake,"  said  Tony,  to  himself. 
"  I  don't  see  why  I  should  exert  myself  to  please 
him,  when  he  goes  out  of  his  way  to  refuse  every 
request  I  make  of  him." 

He  walked  back  to  his  desk,  placed  his  algebra 
upon  the  shelf  with  the  rest  of  his  books — it  would 
have  given  him  more  pleasure  if  he  could  have 
kindled  a  fire  with  it  in  the  stove — bade  his  teacher 
good-night  and  went  out.  Most  boys  would  have 
been  too  sulky  to  be  courteous,  but  Tony  Richard- 
son was  not  that  sort.  With  all  his  faults  he  was 
not  mean-spirited. 

"  This  thing  is  getting  to  be  a  trifle  too  monoto- 
nous," said  he,  as  he  put  on  his  hat  and  descended 
the  stairs,  "  and  I  am  not  going  to  stand  it  much 
longer ;  that's  all  there  is  about  that.  I  don't  see 
why  father  wants  me  to  study  algebra,  when  he 
hated  it  so  cordially  himself.  I'll  warrant  that 
there  are  not  two  captains  in  his  whole  fleet  who 
know  the  binomial-theorem  from  a  side  of  sole- 
leather,  and  yet  they  are  all  good  commanders.  If 
they  can  run  a  boat  without  knowing  anything 
about  mathematics,  I  don't  see  why  I  can't  do  the 
same.  I  want  to  go  to  sea — I  just  know  I  was 
born  to  be  a  sailor — and  if  father  won't  let  me  go, 


168  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

he  must  give  me  a  place  on  one  of  his  boats.  I  can 
tell  him  that  much." 

While  these  thoughts,  and  a  good  many  others 
like  them,  were  passing  through  Tony's  mind,  he 
was  walking  rapidly  toward  the  levee.  When  he 
came  within  sight  of  the  river  he  saw  there, 
among  the  scores  of  other  vessels  with  which  the 
levee  was  lined,  one  of  his  father's  magnificent 
boats,  the  Telegraph,  which  was  advertised  to  start 
for  New  Orleans  on  the  following  Monday.  The 
engineer  had  just  sounded  his  gong,  and  a  boy 
about  his  own  age  was  ascending  the  steps  that  led 
into  the  pilot-house.  The  captain  had  stationed 
himself  near  the  bell  that  stood  on  the  forward  part 
of  the  hurricane-deck,  and  the  hands,  under  the 
charge  of  one  of  the  mates,  were  awaiting  the  order 
to  haul  in  the  gang-plank  and  cast  off  the  lines. 

u  She  must  be  going  up  to  the  coal-fleet,"  thought 
Tony,  as  he  ran  swiftly  down  the  le^ee,  swinging  his 
hat  over  his  head.  "  I  shall  have  plenty  of  time  to 
go  up  with  her,  and  get  back  to  the  depot  before  the 
train  starts  for  home." 

The  captain  saw  him  coming,  and  knowing  who 
he  was,  delayed  the  order  to  cast  off  until  Tony  had 
run  up  the  gang-plank.  The  latter  stopped  on  the 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  169 

hurricane-deck  to  exchange  a  few  words  of  greeting 
with  the  "  old  man,"  and  then  went  into  the  pilot- 
house, where  he  found  George  Ackerman  at  the 
wheel.  George  had  now  been  on  the  river  for  more 
than  six  months,  and  the  reader  will  have  some  idea 
of  the  progress  he  had  made  in  his  new  vocation 
when  we  tell  him  that  he  was  the  only  pilot  on 
board  the  Telegraph  at  that  moment,  that  Mr. 
Black,  after  being  engaged  for  the  trip,  had  gone 
to  Webster  Groves  to  take  leave  of  his  family,  that 
his  partner,  Mr.  Kelsey,  was  somewhere  on  shore, 
and-that  neither  of  them  had  felt  the  least  hesitation 
in  leaving  George  to  take  the  boat  up  to  the  coal- 
fleet,  and  bring  her  back  again. 

Our  hero  did  not  yet  know  the  river,  but  he  was 
a  fine  steersman,  and  could  make  a  landing  or  get 
the  boat  under  way  almost  as  well  as  anybody.  He 
was  worth  something  now,  and  Mr.  Black  paid  him 
twenty  dollars  a  month  for  his  services.  Regarding 
this  in  the  light  of  a  promotion,  George  wrote  to 
Texas  about  it,  and  was  afterwards  very  sorry  that 
he  had  done  so,  for  Uncle  John,  prompted  by  Ned, 
at  once  shut  down  on  the  monthly  allowance  which 
he  had  thus  far  sent  him  regularly.  The  amount 
he  received  was  enough  to  clothe  him  as  well  as  he 


170  GEORGE    AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

cared  to  dress ;  he  was  under  no  expense  for  board, 
for  when  he  was  not  running  on  the  river^  he  lived 
with  Mr.  Black,  in  his  home  at  Webster  Groves. 
But  still  George  did  not  like  that  act  on  the  part  of 
Uncle  John.  It  showed  him  that  his  guardian  was 
determined  to  exercise  all  the  authority  he  possessed, 
and  more,  too,  if  he  could. 

"  How  are  you,  Tony  ?"  exclaimed  George.  "  Sit 
down  until  I  back  her  out  and  straighten  her  up, 
and  then  I'll  talk  to  you." 

"  And  I'll  take  your  place  at  the  wheel,  won't  I  ?" 
said  Tony,  as  he  took  a  seat  on  the  elevated  bench. 

"  Of  course;  that's  always  understood." 

The  two  boys,  having  often  been  thrown  into  each 
other's  society  of  late,  were  well  acquainted,  and  a 
sort  of  friendship  had  sprung  up  between  them. 
Mr.  Black  had  been  employed  on  one  or  another  of 
Mr.  Richardson's  boats  ever  since  he  left  the  Gen- 
eral Quitman,  and  of  course  George  went  with  him 
everywhere  as  his  assistant.  Tony,  who  thoroughly 
hated  school  and  everything  belonging  to  it,  was 
deeply  in  love  with  the  water,  and  spent  all  his 
leisure  hours  in  loitering  about  the  levee;  and 
whenever  any  of  his  father's  boats  were  moved  from 
one  wharf-boat  to  another,  or  sent  up  to  the  coal- 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  171 

fleet,  Tony  was  generally  on  hand  to  do  the  steering. 
He  took  unbounded  delight  in  a  boat,  and  looked 
forward  with  impatience  to  the  day  when  he  would 
take  his  position  as  captain  of  one  of  the  swiftest 
and  most  beautiful  steamers  on  the  river.  What 
sort  of  an  apprenticeship  he  would  have  to  serve 
before  he  would  be  qualified  to  fill  so  responsible  a 
berth,  Tony  did  not  know.  In  fact,  it  was  some- 
thing about  which  he  seldom  troubled  himself. 
There  was  one  thing  he  was  certain  of,  however, 
and  that  was,  he  was  not  going  to  begin  as  deck 
hand  or  watchman,  or  even  as  clerk  or  mate.  The 
deck  hands  were  a  low  set,  in  Tony's  estimation. 
Besides,  they  were  obliged  to  handle  the  freight,  and 
that  was  not  a  genteel  business.  Watchmen  were 
only  a  grade  higher  than  the  deck  hands,  clerks  had 
too  much  to  do  with  figures,  and  mates  were  gener- 
ally too  rough  in  dress  and  language  to  suit  the  boy. 
He  had  heard  of  men  stepping  from  the  pilot-house 
into  the  captain's  place,  and  if  he  had  to  serve  in 
any  subordinate  capacity  before  he  could  take  com- 
mand of  a  steamer,  he  thought  he  would  rather  be  a 
pilot  than  anything  else.  These  officers  and  the 
clerks  comprise  the  aristocracy  among  river  men. 
They  generally  dress  in  the  height  of  fashion,  sport 


172  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

a  good  deal  of  jewelry,  and  the  pilots,  if  they  choose 
to  do  so,  can  wear  kid  gloves  while  they  are  at  work. 
Their  money  comes  easily,  and,  as  a  rule,  goes  easier. 
Where  there  is  one  prudent  man  among  them,  like 
Mr.  Black,  who  puts  his  earnings  into  a  home,  there 
are  a  dozen  who  make  all  haste  to  get  rid  of  them. 

We  ought  to  say  right  here,  that  the  prospect  of 
becoming  a  riverman,  did  not  exactly  suit  Tony. 
His  first  love  was  the  sea.  He  thought  about  it 
during  his  waking  hours,  and  dreamed  of  it  when 
he  was  asleep.  He  sang  forecastle  songs,  told  sea 
stories,  and  tried  to  talk  and  walk  like  a  sailor. 
When  his  father  emphatically  refused  to  aid  him  in 
carrying  out  his  insane  ideas,  Tony  shed  a  good 
many  tears  in  secret ;  banged  his  school-books  about 
more  spitefully  than  ever ;  and  fell  back  upon  the 
river  as  the  next  best  thing  to  think  about.  If  he 
went  there  he  would  accept  nothing  but  a  high 
position,  and  he  would  hold  it  only  temporarily  ; 
for  as  soon  as  he  became  his  own  master,  he  would 
start  as  straight  for  salt  water  as  he  could  go. 

"  How  do  you  like  the  river  by  this  time?"  asked 
Tony,  as  the  Telegraph  was  backed  rapidly  away 
from  the  wharf-boat. 

"First  rate !"  replied  George  with  great  enthu- 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  173 

siasm.  "  I  like  it  better  and  better  every  day,  and  I 
know  I  shall  never  get  tired  of  it.  I  don't  think  I 
should  like  to  go  back  to  herding  cattle  again." 

"  Well,  there's  no  need  of  it.  If  I  were  my  own 
master,  as  you  are,  I  should  do  as  I  please." 

"  And  you  would  please  to  go  to  sea,  I  sup- 
pose?" 

"  Of  course  I  would.  That  is  what  I  am  going 
to  do  sometime;  and  I  don't  see  why  my  father 
will  not  let  me  go  now." 

"  Perhaps  he  has  something  better  in  view  for 
you,"  suggested  George. 

"  He  can't  have  anything  in  view  for  me  that 
will  suit  me  half  so  well,"  replied  Tony,  with  the 
air  of  one  who  had  made  up  his  mind.  "I  am  old 
enough  to  know  what  I  want,  and  what  I  don't 
want.  Let  me  have  her  now.'' 

The  Telegraph  had  by  this  time  been  backed 
away  from  the  levee,  and  straightened  up  the  river, 
and  George  felt  safe  in  resigning  the  wheel  to  his 
companion.  But  he  did  not  go  far  away  from  it. 
There  were  a  good  many  boats  running  about,  some 
moving  out  of  their  berths  and  others  going  in ;  and 
as  it  required  some  skill  to  steer  clear  of  all  of  them, 
George  stood  close  by,  so  that  he  could  seize  the 


174  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

wheel  in  an  instant ;  while  Tony,  who  was  no  mean 
steersman,  managed  it  with  one  hand,  and  kept  up 
an  almost  constant  signaling  with  the  other. 

When  two  boats  meet,  one  going  down  and  the 
other  up  the  river,  or  if  a  boat  is  backing  out  into 
the  stream  while  another  is  coming  up,  the  upper 
boat  has  the  right  of  way,  but  the  lower  one  always 
whistles  first.  For  example,  Smith,  who  is  piloting 
a  boat  up  the  river,  may  whistle  once  to  notify 
Brown,  who  is  coming  down  the  river,  that  he 
(Smith)  intends  to  turn  his  boat  to  the  right,  so  as 
to  pass  by  on  Brown's  left  hand.  If  the  latter  is 
satisfied  with  the  arrangement,  he  gives  notice  of  the 
fact  by  whistling  once  in  reply ;  but  if  he  is  not 
satisfied  with  it,  if  he  wants  to  make  a  landing,  or 
pick  up  a  tow,  or  do  anything  else  that  required 
him  to  make  Smith  pass  by  on  his  right  hand 
instead  of  the  left,  he  whistles  twice;  and  Smith 
must  reply  to  the  signal,  to  show  that  he  under- 
stands it ;  get  his  boat  out  of  Brown's  way,  and  go 
by  on  the  other  side.  The  burden  of  the  responsi- 
bility in  avoiding  a  collision,  if  one  seemed  likely  to 
occur,  would  rest  with  the  pilot  who  was  going  up 
the  river ;  for  the  reason,  that  his  vessel  could  be 
handled  much  more  easily  and  quickly,  than  the 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  175 

one  that  was  coming  down  driven  by  all  the  force 
of  a  powerful  current.  George  had  learned  all 
these  things,  as  well  as  a  good  many  otners,  during 
the  comparatively  short  time  he  had  been  under 
Mr.  Black's  instructions ;  and  knowing  his  respon- 
sibility, he  did  not  feel  willing  to  trust  his  boat 
entirely  in  the  hands  of  his  friend  Tony. 

The  nearer  the  Telegraph  approached  to  the  coal- 
fleet,  which  was  composed  of  a  number  of  barges 
moored  to  the  bank  two  or  three  miles  above  the 
city,  the  clearer  the  river  became,  and  presently 
George  moved  away  from  the  wheel  and  seated  him- 
self on  the  bench.  He  kept  one  eye  on  Tony,  who 
was  too  busy  to  talk,  and  the  other  out  ahead  to  see 
that  nothing  came  in  their  way. 

The  young  pilot  had  been  acquainted  with  his 
new  friend  long  enough  to  know  that  he  was  a  very 
discontented  boy,  and  he  could  not  see  why  it  was 
so.  He  did  not  then  know  that  the  source  of  hap- 
piness is  within  ourselves,  and  that  our  surround- 
ings have  not  so  much  to  do  with  it  as  our  own  dis- 
positions. By  Tony's  invitation  he  had  once 
accompanied  him  to  his  home,  and  he  had  found 
there  all  the  aids  to  happiness  that  any  reasonable 
boy  could  ask  for;  but  still  Mr.  Richardson  was 


176  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

strict,  and  Tony  was  very  much  of  a  rebel. 
The  more  he  resisted  lawful  authority  the  tighter 
the  reins  were  drawn,  until  Tony  finally  came  to 
the  conclusion  that  home  was  always  a  dreary  place, 
that  fathers  found  no  pleasure  in  life  except  in  deny- 
ing their  sons  every  gratification  on  which  they  had 
set  their  hearts,  and  that  no  boy  of  any  spirit  would 
put  up  with  such  a  state  of  affairs  after  he  became 
able  to  take  care  of  himself.  George  was  not  long 
in  finding  out  how  matters  stood,  and  he  wasted  all 
his  eloquence  in  the  effort  to  make  Tony  believe 
that  he  was  then  seeing  the  happiest  years  of  his  life. 

"  You  may  some  time  know  by  experience,  what 
it  is  to  have  no  home  to  go  to,"  said  George. 
"  Stranger  things  than  that  have  happened,  you 
know,  and  then  you  will  wish  that  you  had  made 
the  most  of  these  days,  which  now  seem  so  gloomy 
to  you,  and  improved  the  opportunities  you  slight 
every  hour  of  your  life." 

"  You  needn't  preach,"  snapped  Tony,  in  reply. 
<4  Haven't  you  told  me  more  than  once  that  you  left 
home  because  you  were  not  happy  there?" 

"  I  have  told  you  that  I  left  Texas  because  I  was 
not  safe  there,"  answered  George. 

"  Well,  it  was  your  home,  wasn't  it?" 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  177 

"It  used  to  be." 

u  You  lived  in  the  same  house  that  you  lived  m 
while  your  father  was  alive?" 

George  said  he  did. 

"  And  your  father's  only  brother  was  your  guar- 
dian and  had  charge  of  the  house  ?" 

George  said  that  was  so,  too. 

"  Then  it  was  your  home,"  said  Tony,  tri- 
umphantly;  "and  to  be  consistent,  you  ought 
to  have  stayed  there,  whether  you  wanted  to  or 
not." 

"But  haven't  I  told  you  that  I  couldn't  stay?" 
asked  George. 

"  And  haven't  I  told  you  that  I  can't  stay  here  ?" 
retorted  Tony.  "  This  is  not  a  new  notion  of  mine. 
I  have  been  thinking  about  it  for  a  long  time — in 
fact,  ever  since  I  went  into  algebra.  It  is  hard 
work  for  me  to  go  to  school." 

"  It  will  be  harder  for  you  to  earn  your  own 
living.  I  know  what  work  is,  and  you  don't. 
There  is  no  need  of  your  going  to  sea,  or  running 
on  the  river." 

"  I  know  what  you  mean.  Of  course,  I  shall  be 
a  rich  man  some  day,  if  I  live,  but  I  don't  care  for 

that.     I  want  liberty  to  do  as  I  please,  more  than  I 
1.2 


178  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

want  money,  and  I  want  it  now.  What's  more, 
I'm  going  to  have  it,  either  with  or  without " 

"  Your  father's  consent,"  added  George,  when 
Tony  paused. 

"  That's  just  it.  I  don't  know  that  I  ought  to 
be  so  plain  with  you,  but  you  will  not  repeat  what 
I  say?" 

"I  have  better  business  than  carrying  tales," 
replied  George.  "  If  your  father  should  ever  say 
anything  to  me  about  it,  I  should  tell  him  the 
truth,  and  some  day  you  would  thank  me  for  it.  I 
know  what  you  have  in  your  mind,  and  you  had 
better  take  my  advice  and  give  it  up." 

"More  preaching,"  said  Tony,  with  a  laugh. 
"  I  give  you  fair  warning  that  you  will  never  make 
a  convert  of  me,  for  you  don't  know  what  you  are 
talking  about.  You  have  led  a  free  and  easy  life 
there  on  the  plains,  being  under  no  restraint,  but 
coming  and  going  as  you  pleased,  and  what  do  you 
know  of  the  trials  and  tribulations  of  a  boy  who  is 
held  with  his  nose  tight  to  the  grindstone  every 
day?  Come,  George,  give  us  a  rest.  If  you  do  not 
let  my  father  into  my  secret  before  he  broaches  the 
subject  to  you,  you  will  never  say  a  word  to  him 
about  it." 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  179 

There  was  not  the  slightest  danger  that  Mr. 
Richardson  would  ever  speak  to  George  about  Tony, 
but  it  was  not  very  long  before  he  took  occasion  to 
speak  to  Tony  about  George.  The  next  evening, 
while  they  were  seated  in  the  cars  waiting  for  the 
train  to  start  toward  home,  Mr.  Richardson  sud- 
denly looked  up  from  his  paper  and  said : 

"Anthony,  who  was  that  fellow  you  brought 
home  with  you  yesterday  ?" 

"  He's  not  a  fellow,"  answered  the  boy.  '"  His 
name  is  Ackerman,  and  he  is  Mr.  Black's  cub.  He 
runs  on  one  of  your  boats." 

"  Well,  just  drop  him  now ;  and  don't  bring  him 
or  anybody  like  him  out  to  Kirkwood  any  more. 
When  you  have  so  many  nice  acquaintances,  I  can't 
imagine  why  you  should  be  so  intimate  with  those 
ri vermeil,"  said  Mr.  Richardson. 

"  They  are  the  ones  who  have  made  your  money 
for  you,"  said  Tony. 

"  I  am  aware  of  that ;  and  they  have  been  well 
paid  for  serving  me.  I  find  no  fault  with  the  men 
themselves — a  braver  and  more  skilful  class  cannot 
be  found  anywhere — but  I  do  object  to  the  morals 
of  the  rsost  of  them.  Having  passed  some  of  the 
best  years  of  my  life  on  the  river,  I  ought  to  know 


180  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

something  about  rivermen.  This  boy  you  speak  of 
may  be  all  right  now,  but  he  is  under  bad  influ- 
ences." 

George  never  heard  of  this  conversation  between 
Tony  and  his  father,  and  there  was  nothing  in 
Tony's  behavior  toward  him  to  indicate  that  such  an 
interview  had  ever  taken  place.  The  latter  kept 
track  of  the  different  boats  on  which  Mr.  Black  was 
employed,  and  whenever  one  of  them  came  into 
port,  Tony  made  it  a  point  to  visit  the  cub  pilot  as 
soon  as  he  could  get  out  of  school.  He  liked  George, 
and  he  had  but  one  fault  to  find  with  him  ;  the 
latter  had  been  a  cattle  raiser,  and  Tony  wished  he 
had  been  a  sailor,  so  that  he  could  have  talked  with 
him  about  the  sea. 

The  Telegraph  reached  the  coal-fleet  in  due  time, 
and  fortunately  for  Tony  there  was  another  boat 
there,  the  Ida  Clifford,  which,  having  filled  her 
bunkers,  was  about  to  return  to  the  city.  Being 
acquainted  with  one  of  the  pilots,  Tony  went  aboard 
of  her  and  steered  her  down,  thus  saving  himself  a 
long  walk.  On  arriving  at  the  landing  he  went 
ashore,  and  started  for  his  father's  office  on  Fourth 
street.  When  he  reached  it,  he  saw  Mr.  Richard- 
son standing  in  the  door  drawing  on  his  gloves. 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  181 

"Ah!"  said  he,  as  Tony  came  up.  "I  began 
to  think  I  should  have  to  start  for  home  without 
you.  You  have  been  kept  after  school  as  usual,  I 
suppose  ? 

"Yes,  sir,"  replied  Tony,  "And  when  I  got  out, 
I  went  up  to  the  coal-fleet  on  the  Telegraph." 

"  Well,  now  that  you  have  come,  we  will  start 
for  the  depot.  We  have  barely  time  to  catch  the 
train." 

Mr.  Richardson  lived  in  Kirkwood,  a  beautiful 
little  village  located  about  thirteen  miles  from  the 
river.  Its  society  was  made  up  principally  of  the 
families  of  wealthy  men  who  did  business  in  St. 
Louis.  Living  within  easy  reach  of  the  city,  they 
were  still  far  enough  away  from  it  to  escape  all  its 
heat,  dust  and  noise.  Tony  and  his  father  came  in 
every  morning  on  the  seven  o'clock  train,  and 
returned  together  in  the  evening  after  business 
hours  were  over. 

"  I  should  think  you  would  get  tired  of  being 
kept  after  school,"  said  Mr.  Richardson,  as  they 
walked  toward  the  depot.  "  The  report  you  bring 
home  every  week  shows  you  to  be  anything  but  a 
faithful  student.  What  do  you  expect  to  gain  -by  so 
foolish  a  waste  of  time?" 


182  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"I  don't  expect  to  gain  anything  by  it,"  replied 
Tony.  "  I  only  want  to  get  through  my  school- 
days with  as  little  trouble  and  work  as  I  can.  I 
shall  be  glad  when  they  are  over." 

"And  you  want  to  get  through  life  in  the  same 
way,  I  suppose  ?"  said  his  father. 

"  No,  sir ;  I  am  willing  to  work,  and  I  should 
like  to  begin  to-morrow.  I  want  to  go  to  sea." 

"Anthony,  you  might  as  well  give  up  that  idea 
first  as  last.  You  will  never  go  with  my  consent. 
I  don't  see  what  put  that  notion  into  your  head. 
You  have  about  as  clear  an  idea  of  what  would  be 
required  of  you  on  shipboard  as  you  have  of  the 
duties  of  a  book-keeper." 

"  Will  you  let  me  do  the  next  best  thing,  then  ? 
Will  you  let  me  go  on  the  river  ?" 

"  No,  indeed.  I  want  to  see  you  something  better 
than  a  steamboat  man." 

"  I  should  really  like  to  know  what  you  want  me 
to  be,  anyhow,"  said  Tony,  with  some  impatience. 

"  I  want  to  see  you  a  respected  member  of  society, 
for  one  thing,"  said  his  father.  "I  hope  you  will 
not  think  that  your  school-days  are  over  until  you 
have  been  through  college.  That  was  one  thing  I 
missed,  for  I  began  life  poor ;  but  I  don't  want  you 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  183 

to  miss  it.  I  can  see  now  how  advantageous  such 
training  would  have  been  to  me.  Get  your  educa- 
tion first,  and  decide  upon  your  life-work  after- 
wards." 

"But  I  don't  want  to  go  to  college,"  said  Tony; 
"and  I  won't,  either,"  he  added,  in  an  undertone. 
"  I  am  not  going  to  study  myself  to  death  for  the 
sake  of  reading  Greek  and  Latin.  I  don't  want  to 
go  to  school  any  longer,"  he  said,  aloud.  "I  had 
the  best  notion  in  the  world  to  pack  up  my  books 
to-night  and  take  them  home  with  me." 

"  That  would  have  been  a  useless  waste  of  strength 
and  time  on  your  part,  for  on  Monday  morning  you 
would  have  had  the  pleasure  of  packing  them  up 
again  and  taking  them  back  with  you,"  said  Mr. 
Richardson,  bringing  the  iron  ferule  of  his  heavy 
cane  down  upon  the  sidewalk  with  'more  than  his 
usual  energy.  "  I  believe  I  shall  have  something  to 
say  in  regard  to  your  conduct  for  at  least  five  years 
to  come." 

"  Then  I  must  go  to  school,  whether  I  want  to  or 
not,  must  I?" 

He  asked  this  question  in  a  tone  of  voice  which 
he  intended  should  make  an  impression  on  his 
father,  and  lead  him  to  see  that  his  son  had  resolved 


184  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

upon  something.  But,  contrary  to  his  expectations, 
Mr.  Richardson  did  not  seem  to  be  at  all  affected  by 
it.  He  answered  very  calmly  and  decidedly, 

"  Certainly,  you  must." 

"  Well,  if  you  won't  let  me  go  to  sea,  as  you 
know  I  have  long  wanted  to  do,  nor  on  the  river 
either,  can't  you  find  a  place  for  me  in  your  office  ? 
I  am  going  to  give  him  every  chance,"  said  Tony, 
to  himself,  "  and  if  he  doesn't  see  fit  to  improve 
one  of  them,  he  must  take  the  responsibility  for 
anything  that  happens." 

"  I  have  no  place  for  you,"  replied  his  father. 
"  There  is  nothing  in  the  office  you  can  do,  unless 
you  act  as  messenger  boy,  and  I  certainly  shall  not 
discharge  young  Bowman  to  make  an  opening  for 
you.  He  needs  the  money  he  earns,  for  he  is  the 
only  support  of  a  widowed  mother." 

"Couldn't  I  be  a  clerk  of  some  kind  ?"  asked 
Tony.  "  I  have  given  him  another  chance." 

"No,  indeed.  My  clerks  must  all  understand 
figures.  I  do  wish  you  would  wake  up  and  go  to 
work  in  earnest.  Anthony,  didn't  you  tell  me  last 
Christmas  that  if  I  would  buy  you  a  pony,  you 
would  work  hard  at  your  books  for  a  whole 
year  ?" 


LIFE    IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  185 

Tony  believed  he  did  have  a  faint  recollection  of 
making  some  such  promise. 

"  You  have  got  the  pony,  and  how  have  you  kept 
your  word?" 

The  boy  did  not  reply  to  this  question.  The 
truth  of  the  matter  was,  he  had  learned,  as  a  good 
many  of  us  have,  that  there  is  more  pleasure  in 
looking  forward  to  the  possession  of  a  thing,  than 
there  is  in  possessing  it.  The  pride  he  at  first  felt 
in  having  a  horse  of  his  own,  very  soon  gave  place 
to  an  unreasonable  hostility  toward  the  animal.  It 
was  not  so  easy  to  ride  him  as  it  looked  to  be,  and 
he  was  so  slow  of  foot  that  one  of  the  Kirkwood 
boys  offered  to  bet  a  six-bladed,  pearl-handled  knife 
against  Tony's  "  Barlow,"  that  he  could  find  a 
fellow  who  could  beat  him  in  a  fair  race.  Tony 
couldn't  afford  to  study  hard  for  a  whole  year  to 
pay  for  such  a  pony  as  that. 

"  But  whether  you  wake  up  or  not,"  continued 
Mr.  Richardson,  "you  can  depend  upon  one  thing: 
you  are  going  to  stay  at  school  until  you  know  more 
than  you  do  now." 

"  We'll  see  about  that,"  was  Tony's  mental 
rejoinder.  "  I  have  tried  my  best  more  than  a 
dozen  times  to  induce  him  to  let  me  leave  school — 


186  GEORGE   AT  THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

I'd  rather  saw  wood  than  pore  over  these  books  day 
after  day — but  he  is  bound  to  disregard  all  my 
wishes,  and  now  I  will  see  how  he'll  feel  when  he 
finds  that  I  have  disregarded  his.  I  never  can  do 
anything  I  want  to  do  as  long  as  I  stay  here,  and 
I'm  going  to  make  a  break.  I  am  going  out  into 
the  world  to  begin  life  in  earnest.  I  am  oft"  for 
salt  water !" 

As   Tony  said  this,  he  closed  his  lips  tightly  and 
looked  very  determined,  indeed. 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  187 


CHAPTER  XL 

DOWN   THE    RIVER   ON   A   COAL-BARGE. 


RICHARDSON  had  never  held  five  min- 
utes' conversation  with  a  sailor,  he  had  never 
seen  the  ocean  or  a  ship,  and  the  inquiry  will  very 
naturally  arise  :  What  could  have  put  it  into  his 
head  to  go  to  sea  ?  The  idea  was  suggested  to  him 
through  the  same  hurtful  influence  that  had  made 
a  thief  of  Bob  Owens,  and  sent  him  out  into  the 
world  to  make  himself  famous  as  a  hunter  and 
Indian  fighter.  Perhaps  you  don't  believe  that  so 
simple  a  thing  as  reading  a  story  could  affect  a  boy's 
whole  life  ?  If  so,  what  do  you  think  of  the  follow- 
ing, which  recently  appeared  in  a  Rochester  paper  ? 
We  have  copied  it  just  as  it  was  printed,  with  these 
exceptions  :  the  names  of  the  culprits  have  been 
changed,  and  another  substituted  for  that  of  the 
paper  in  which  the  story  referred  to  appeared  : 


188  GEORGE   AT   TI1E   WHEEL;    OR, 

"BOYS'  PAPERS  AND  INCENDIARISM. 

"  The  speedy  arrest  of  the  c  fire-bugs,'  who 
amused  themselves  two  or  three  evenings  in  this 
city  by  firing  buildings,  was  highly  gratifying  to 
our  citizens,  many  of  whom  began  to  feel  a  little 
nervous  over  the  operations  of  the  young  rascals. 
We  refer  to  them  and  their  work  in  this  place 
because  they  afford  another  illustration  of  the  per- 
nicious influence  upon  boyish  minds  of  evil  liter- 
ature. Damon,  the  elder  of  the  two,  is  eighteen, 
and  his  companion,  Volbcts,  is  twelve  years  old. 
The  former,  when  captured,  had  in  his  pocket  two 
copies  of  the  Boys  of  the  Nation,  one  of  those 
abominable  sheets  filled  with  wild  stories  of  crime 
and  adventure  so  fascinating  to  ill-disciplined  minds, 
and  he  said  that  he  was  inspired  to  his  criminal 
work  by  reading  the  story  of  l  Rory  of  the  Hills ; 
or,  the  Outlaws  of  Tipperary.'  These  boys  had 
already  burned  down  a  house  on  Orchard  street  and 
a  stave  factory,  when  they  were  arrested,  and  they 
had  planed  to  fire  three  more  Wednesday  night,  if 
the  detectives  had  not  spoiled  their  game." 

That  proves,  beyond  a  doubt,  that  stories  have  an 
effect  of  some  kind,  does  it  not  ?  Tony  Richardson 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  189 

had  imbibed  some  very  ridiculous  ideas  through  the 
same  channel.  The  story  that  made  the  greatest 
impression  upon  him  was  the  "  Phantom  Cruiser," 
which  he  had  read  and  re-read  until  he  knew  it 
almost  by  heart.  It  described  the  adventures  and 
exploits  of  a  boy  who,  after  passing  through  all 
sorts  of  perils,  such  as  shipwrecks,  and  battles  with 
pirates,  was  finally  turned  adrift  by  a  mutinous  crew 
because  he  would  not  join  his  fortunes  with  theirs, 
and  blown  upon  an  uninhabited  island  in  mid  ocean. 
There  he  accidentally  stumbled  upon  a  bed  of  pearl 
oysters,  of  wonderful  richness,  and  after  he  had 
loaded  himself  down  with  the  valuable  gems,  he 
escaped  from  the  island,  and  set  out  for  home  to 
reward  his  friends  and  excite  the  envy  of  all  his 
enemies.  Tony's  thoughts  often  wondered  off  to 
that  island  when  they  ought  to  have  been  fixed  on 
his  books.  They  wandered  off  there  now,  while  he 
was  walking  toward  the  depot  with  his  father,  and 
he  hoped,  and  sometimes  he  believed,  that  his  sailor 
life  would  have  an  ending  quite  as  romantic  and 
glorious. 

Unfortunately  for  Tony,  the  realities  of  life  had 
no  charm  for  him.  He  was  constantly  building 
air-castles,  and  looking  for  something  that  never 


190  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

came.  He  lived  in  a  little  world  of  his  own  cre- 
ation, and  he  was  not  happy  unless  he  was  wan- 
dering about  that  world,  and  mingling  with  the 
impossible  beings  with  which  his  lively  imagination 
had  peopled  it. 

Having  decided  to  "  make  a  break,"  Tony  went 
further,  and  made  up  his  mind  that  he  would  do  it 
without  any  unnecessary  delay.  He  could  not  go 
on  the  river  without  his  father's  consent,  for  almost 
all  the  steamboat  men  who  ran  out  of  St.  Louis  were 
acquainted  with  him,  and  some  of  them  would  be 
sure  to  tell  Mr.  Richardson  that  they  had  seen  him. 
If  he  went  anywhere,  he  must  go  to  sea.  But  just 
here  a  difficulty  arose  :  How  was  he  going  to  make 
his  way  to  New  Orleans,  which  was  the  nearest 
port  at  which  he  could  ship  on  an  ocean-going 
vessel  ?  There  were  three  ways  open  to  him.  He 
could  ask  some  steamboat  captain  to  pass  him,  or  he 
could  ship  as  deck  hand,  or  he  could  pay  his  fare  in 
the  cabin.  There  were  objections  to  every  one  of 
these  plans.  If  he  asked  for  a  pass,  he  would  be  sure 
to  get  it,  but  he  would  have  to  answer  a  thousand 
and  one  questions.  Did  his  father  say  he  might  go 
to  New  Orleans  ?  and,  if  so,  why  didn't  Tony  take 
passage  on  one  of  his  boats. 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  191, 

"  That  would  never  do,"  soliloquised  the  boy, 
who  had  thought  all  these  things  over  more  than 
once.  "  When  I  leave  here  I  want  to  disappear  as 
completely  as  though  I  had  ceased  to  exist.  If 
father  should  find  out  that  I  had  left  for  New 
Orleans,  it  would  be  just  like  him  to  telegraph  there 
and  stop  me.  I  can't  work  my  way  as  deck  hand, 
for  I  couldn't  eat  and  sleep  with  such  a  lot  of  men 
as  they  are.  Besides  I  am  not  strong  enough  to 
handle  heavy  freight,  and  some  of  those  sharp-eyed 
mates  would  certainly  penetrate  any  disguise  I 
might  assume.  If  I  pay  my  fare  in  the  cabin, 
I  shall  run  the  same  risks  I  would  run  in  asking 
for  a  pass.  '  Tony,'  some  inquisitive  clerk  would 
say,  '  what  are  you  doing  this  for  ?  Why  don't 
you  go  down  on  one  of  your  father's  boats,  and 
then  you  could  go  for  nothing  ?'  I  wish  I  was  not 
so  well  known  If  I  only  had  money  enough  I 
would  go  by  rail ;  but  I  have  only  enough  to  pay 
for  my  ticket,  and  I  ought  to  have  a  little  left  to 
buy  an  outfit  when  I  reach  New  Orleans.  Dear 
me !  I  am  always  bothered  about  something." 

But,  after  all,  getting  to  New  Orleans  was  not  so 
great  a  task  as  Tony  thought  it  was.  Unluckily 
for  him  events  took  a  turn  which  made  it  very  easy 


192  GEORGE    AT  THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

for  him  to  accomplish  his  object,  and  that,  too, 
without  his  father's  knowledge. 

The  next  day  was  Saturday,  and  consequently 
there  was  no  school ;  but  Tony  went  to  the  city  as 
usual — we  have  said  that  he  spent  all  his  leisure 
hours  on  the  levee — and  taking  leave  of  his  father 
at  the  depot  made  his  way  toward  one  of  the  wharf- 
boats.  There  he  encountered  a  well-known  coal- 
dealer,  Mr.  Vandegriff  by  name,  whose  countenance 
lighted  up  at  the  sight  of  him. 

"  Looking  for  a  job  ?"  said  he,  as  he  shook  hands 
with  Tony. 

"Not  to-day,  I  guess,"  was  the  laughing  reply. 

"  But  I  am  in  earnest,"  said  Mr.  Vandegriff,  as 
he  and  Tony  walked  over  the  gang-plank  to  the 
wharf-boat.  "  Here's  the  Armada  loading  for  New 
Orleans,  and  she  is  in  such  a  hurry  to  get  off  that 
she  can't  stop  to  coal  up;  so  I  have  had  a  barge 
made  fast  alongside  of  her,  and  she  is  going  to  take 
it  down  the  river  with  her  and  coal  up  while  she  is 
under  way.  When  she  gets  all  she  wants  she  will 
turn  the  barge  adrift,  and  when  one  of  my  tugs 
comes  in,  I'll  send  down  after  it." 

"Well?"  said  Tony,  who  knew  that  there  wa3 
nothing  unusual  in  all  this. 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  193 

"  Well,  I  want  somebody  to  go  with  her  and 
check  the  coal  and  take  the  money,"  said  Mr. 
Vandegriff. 

"Where's  Hardy?"  asked  Tony.  "I  thought 
he  attended  to  all  such  business  for  you." 

"So  he  did,  but  he  will  never  do  it  again.  I 
gave  him  his  walking-papers  last  night.  He  is  too 
imprudent  to  handle  any  of  my  money.  The  Handy 
Andy  took  a  barge  down  the  river  yesterday  to  coal 
up  while  she  was  under  way,  and  as  she  had  a  small 
crew,  I  sent  fourteen  of  my  darkies  with  her  to 
help.  The  Handy  Andy  let  the  barge  go  about 
twenty  miles  below  here,  and  Hardy  was  alone  on 
that  barge  with  that  gang  of  men  for  more  than 
four  hours.  When  the  tug  came  up  to  take  her  in 
tow,  Hardy  said  to  the  darkies :  '  Have  any  of  you 
boys  got  a  life  preserver  about  you  ?'  They  told 
him  they  hadn't ;  and  Hardy  said :  '  Then,  if  the 
tug  blows  up  before  we  reach  the  city,  I  shall  have 
to  use  this  to  buoy  me  up  till  I  can  swim  ashore;' 
and  as  he  spoke,  he  drew  out  of  his  pocket  a  roll  of 
bills  containing  about  three  hundred  dollars,  and 
put  under  his  arm." 

"  What  a  dunce  !"  cried  the  boy. 

"Wasn't  he!"  exclaimed  Mr.  Vandegriff.     "He 
13 


194  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

acted  as  though  he  had  no  sense.  The  darkies 
opened  their  eyes  when  they  saw  the  money,  and 
one  of  them  said  to  him  :  '  Fore  de  La\vd,  boss,  if 
we'd  knowed  you  had  all  dem  greenbacks  in  your 
good  clothes,  you'd  never  tuk  'em  to  de  city  wid 
you ;'  and  to  tell  the  honest  truth,  I  don't  think  he 
ever  would.  It  would  have  been  no  trouble  at  all 
for  them  to  rob  him  ;  divide  the  money  among  them- 
selves ;  jump  into  the  skiff  that  was  towing  at  the 
stern  of  the  barge,  and  take  to  the  woods.  The 
worst  of  it  is,  that  Hardy,  by  that  one  fool  act,  has 
made  it  dangerous  for  anybody  to  go  down  the  river 
pn  a  barge  with  a  gang  of  men,  unless  he  is  pre- 
pared to  defend  himself.  Those  negroes  have  always 
believed,  that  the  boat  knew  how  much  coal  she 
wanted,  and  paid  for  it  before  leaving  the  city  ;  and 
that  the  clerk  went  down  with  her  simply  to  see 
that  she  didn't  take  more  than  she  had  paid  for. 
But  now  their  eyes  are  opened,  and  there  are  some 
reckless  ones  among  them  who  will  hereafter  be  on 
the  watch." 

"And  is  that  the  job  you  want  me  to  take?" 
asked  Tony.  "  I  think  you  had  better  get  some- 
body else." 

''Bless  your  heart,"  said  Mr.  Vandegriff,  "there's 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  195 

no  clanger  in  going  down  with  the  Armada.  If 
there  was,  I  shouldn't  think  of  asking  you.  She 
has  got  her  full  crew  ;  and  I  shall  send  only  a 
couple  of  my  best  hands  with  you  to  make  the  lines 
fast,  when  the  tug  finds  the  barge.  They  have 
worked  for  me  a  long  time;  and  I  would  rather 
trust  them,  than  some  white  men  with  whom  I  am 
acquainted.  I  know  that  money  is  no  object  to 
you,"  he  added,  seeing  that  the  boy  still  hesitated, 
"  but  I  don't  want  you  to  do  it  for  nothing.  I'll 
give  you  ten  dollars." 

Tony  pricked  up  his  ears  when  he  heard  this.  If 
he  could  get  a  few  more  such  "  jobs  "  at  ten  dollars 
a  piece,  it  would  not  take  him  many  Saturdays  to 
earn  money  enough  to  pay  for  his  sailor's  outfit, 
when  he  reached  New  Orleans. 

"  Suppose  I  should  get  into  a  fight  with  these 
two  darkies,  and  keep  them  from  robbing  me  and 
running  off  with  your  money  ?"  said  Tony. 

"  Then  you  can  keep  a  hundred  dollars  out  of  it, 
and  hand  me  the  balance,"  answered  Mr.  Vande- 
griif.  who  little  imagined  that  the  boy  would  ever 
be  in  a  situation  to  take  advantage  of  this  permis- 
sion. "You'll  go,  won't  you?  Speak  quick,  for 
she  will  be  ready  to  start  in  a  few  minutes  ;  and  I 


196  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

must  sign  a  blank  receipt  for  you  to  fill  out,  when 
she  has  finished  coaling.  I  haven't  time  to  look 
for  anybody  else;  and  I  can't  go  myself." 

uYes,"  said  Tony,  «  I'll  go." 

Mr.  Vandegriff  walked  rapidly  toward  the  office, 
and  as  he  drew  the  printed  form  of  a  receipt  from 
his  pocket-book,  the  Armada's  bell  rang.  He 
quickly  signed  the  receipt  and  placed  it  in  a  small 
account-book  which  he  handed  over  to  the  boy,  who 
ran  out  and  sprang  on  board  the  Armada. 

"  All  ashore,  Tony,"  shouted  the  captain,  from 
his  perch  on  the  hurricane- deck.  "  We  are  in  a 
great  hurry.  Where  in  the  world  is  that  clerk  of 
yours,  Vandegriff?" 

The  coal-dealer  replied  by  pointing  out  Tony, 
who  shook  his  account-book  at  the  captain.  The 
latter  nodded  his  head  to  signify  that  it  was  all 
right,  tapped  the  bell,  and  when  the  lines  had  been 
cast  off  and  the  staging  hauled  in,  the  Armada 
backed  out  into  the  stream,  taking  the  coal-barge 
with  her. 

As  soon  as  the  forecastle  had  been  cleared  up, 
long  planks  were  run  down  into  the  barge,  and  the 
crew  of  the  steamer,  assisted  by  Mr.  Vandegriff's 
two  negroes,  began  filling  up  the  bunkers,  Tony 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  197 

and  one  of  the  clerks  sitting  on  the  guard  and 
checking  the  boxes  as  fast  as  they  were  brought  on 
board.  It  was  about  nine  o'clock  when  the  Armada 
moved  away  from  the  wharf-boat,  and  it  was  a  little 
past  three  in  the  afternoon  when  she  cast  off  the 
lines  and  left  the  barge  to  the  mercy  of  the  current, 
and  Tony  Richardson  sitting  on  the  forward-deck 
with  more  than  five  hundred  dollars  in  his  pocket, 
and  a  look  of  excitement  on  his  face.  It  was  a 
much  larger  amount  of  money  than  he  had  ever 
had  in  his  possession  before. 

"  Don't  I  wish  it  was  mine?"  thought  Tony,  as 
he  straightened  out  his  leg  and  passed  his  hand  over 
the  huge  lump  in  his  pocket.  "  I  wouldn't  see  St. 
Louis  again  for  one  while,  I  bet  you.'.' 

Notwithstanding  his  great  desire  to  free  himself 
from  the  restraints  of  home  and  school,  and  to 
enter  upon  the  glorious  career  of  which  he  had  so 
often  dreamed,  Tony  had  never  once  thought  of 
stealing  money  enough  to  enable  him  to  carry  out 
his  plans.  The  idea  had  never  once  suggested 
itself  to  him,  and  if  it  had,  by  any  chance,  came 
into  his  mind,  it  would  have  frightened  him.  He 
would  no  more  have  taken  a  dollar  of  Mr.  Vande- 
griff's  money  to  keep  him  in  his  runaway  scheme, 


198  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL  ;    OR, 

than  he  would  have  jumped  into  the  river  and  made 
way  with  himself. 

"Now,  I  believe  I  will  eat  my  lunch,"  continued 
Tony,  "and  I  hope  by  the  time  it  is  finished  that 
tug  will  be  along.  What  Mr.  Vandegriff  told 
me  about  Hardy  makes  me  just  a  trifle  nervous. 
But  didn't  he  say  that  these  men  were  all  right  ? 
He  certainly  did,  and  so  I  have  nothing  to  fear." 

Tony  squared  around  on  the  barge  so  that  he 
could  look  up  and  down  the  river  without  turning 
his  body,  and  while  disposing  of  the  good  things, 
the  steward  of  the  Armada  had  put  up  for 
him,  he  kept  a  good  lookout  for  the  tug  whose 
appearance  he  awaited  with  no  little  impatience  and 
anxiety.  Now  and  then  he  turned  his  eyes  toward 
the  two  negroes,  who  were  seated  on  the  after-deck 
engaged  in  very  earnest  conversation,  but  he  paid 
no  particular  attention  to  them  until  he  saw  them 
arise  to  their  feet,  as  if  moved  by  a  common  impulse, 
and  start  toward  the  bow,  walking  along  the  gun- 
wales of  the  barge,  one  on  each  side.  When  the 
barge  was  loaded  to  its  full  capacity,  the  top  of  these 
gunwales  was  not  more  than  two  feet  above  the 
water;  but  as  fast  as  the  coal  was  taken  out,  the 
unwieldy  craft  rose,  and  now,  when  the  cargo  was 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  199 

almost  all  removed,  the  gunwales  were  six  or  seven 
feet  high.  Each  end  of  the  barge  was  covered  by  a 
deck  about  eight  feet  long,  and  this  was  where  the 
crew  stood  when  they  were  handling  the  lines. 

This  movement  on  the  part  of  the  negroes 
alarmed  Tony,  who  dropped  the  leg  of  the  chicken 
he  held  in  his  hand,  and  sprang  to  his  feet.  Some- 
thing told  him  that  it  would  never  do  to  allow  those 
men  to  come  too  close  to  him. 

"  Say,  you  Mose  and  Sambo,"  he  shouted,  "what 
are  you  coming  here  for  ?  Go  back  where  you 
belong." 

"  Want  to  ax  you  something,  sah,"  replied  one 
of  the  negroes — the  one  at  whom  the  boy  had 
looked  when  he  called  out  the  name  of  "  Sambo." 
He  hadn't  got  either  one  of  the  names  right,  but 
Btill  the  ones  he  had  given  them  will  do  to  distin- 
guish them  by. 

u  Stop,  right  where  you  are,"  commanded  Tony, 
who,  frightened  as  he  was,  managed  to  speak  in  a 
very  firm  and  determined  tone  of  voice.  "  I  can 
hear  what  you  have  to  say." 

"We's  comin'  right  dar  whar  you  is,"  said  the 
one  who  had  been  called  Mose. 

As  he   spoke,  he   drew  a  long   knife  from   his 


200  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

pocket,  and  with  a  quick  movement,  threw  open  the 
blade,  which  caught  with  a  spring.  Tony's  terror 
was  greatly  increased  by  the  sight  of  the  glittering 
steel.  It  was  plain  that  the  men  intended  to  rob 
him  of  Mr.  Vandegriff's  money,  but  what  they 
intended  to  do  with  him  after  they  got  it,  was  not 
so  clear  to  him.  The  sight  of  the  knife  and  the 
expression  on  the  face  of  the  man  who  carried  it, 
suggested  only  the  most  dreadful  things.  He 
looked  anxiously  up  the  river,  but  the  tug  was  not 
in  sight.  He  turned  his  eyes  in  the  other  direction, 
but  the  stream  was  clear  as  far  as  he  could  see. 
Beyond  a  point  which  jutted  out  from  the  left  hand 
bank,  a  huge  black  cloud  of  smoke  arose  in  the  air, 
pointing  out  the  position  of  the  Armada,  which  was 
flying  down  the  river  with  all  the  speed  her  power- 
ful engines  could  give  her.  There  was  nobody  to 
whom  he  could  look  for  assistance ;  he  was  utterly 
alone.  He  had  never  before  been  placed  in  a  situa- 
tion of  danger,  and  when  he  thought  of  it  after- 
ward, he  was  astonished  at  the  manner  in  which  he 
conducted  himself,  and  the  promptness  with  which 
he  acted. 

"  Does  you  see  dis  yere  ?"  said  Mose,  holding  up 
the  knife  so  that  the  boy  could  have  a  fair  view  of 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  201 

it.     "  Don't  make  no  fursin'  or  yellin'  now,  kase  if 
you  do,  it  '11  be  wuss  for  you !" 

"  I  am  in  charge  of  this  craft,"  said  Tony,  still 
speaking  in  a  steady  voice,  "and  I  tell  you  again, 
and  for  the  last  time,  to  go  back  to  the  stern  of  the 
barge  where  you  belong.  If  you  don't,  you'll  hear 
something  drop." 

The  negroes,  who  were  surprised  at  the  boy's 
bold  front,  halted  and  looked  across  the  barge  at 
each  other.  If  Tony  had  at  that  moment  placed  his 
hand  in  his  hip-pocket,  or  made  any  other  demon- 
strations to  indicate  that  he  had  a  pistol  about  him, 
it  is  very  probable  that  the  men  would  have  obeyed 
his  orders,  and  that  he  would  have  been  saved  from 
something  that  afterwards  happened ;  but  Tony, 
being  the  hero  of  an  adventure  that  really  occurred, 
and  not  an  imaginary  character,  did  not  do  this. 
He  was  too  badly  frightened  to  think  of  it,  and  he 
did  just  what  he  ought  not  to  have  done.  Seeing 
that  the  men  hesitated,  he  sought  to  gain  an 
increased  advantage  over  them  and  frighten  them 
still  more  by  stooping  quickly  and  picking  up  two 
lumps  of  coal.  This  simple  act  reassured  the 
negroes,  and  Mose  shouted  across  to  his  com- 
panion— 


202  GEORuE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"Hi,  Jeff!  He  ain't  got  nuffin  to  shoot  wid. 
Frow  dem  chunks  down,  boy,  or  it'll  be  wuss  for 
you,  if  you  don't  pay  some  heed  to  what  we're  tellin' 
you !" 

The  men  again  advanced  along  the  gunwales,  and 
Tony,  knowing  that  if  he  allowed  them  to  gain  a 
footing  on  the  deck  they  would  quickly  overpower 
him,  suddenly  drew  back  his  right-hand  and  sent 
one  of  the  lumps  of  coal  whizzing  through  the  air, 
toward  the  man  who  carried  the  knife.  He  had 
been  catcher  for  the  Monitor  ball  club  for  two  sea- 
sons, and  the  members  were  loud  in  their  praises  of 
the  way  he  threw  to  the  second  base.  He  threw 
that  lump  of  coal  with  all  the  force  he  could  put 
into  his  arm,  and  it  went  as  straight  for  that 
darkey's  head,  as  a  ball  from  his  hands  ever  went 
for  the  hands  of  the  second  basemen.  It  struck 
that  head  too,  and  bounded  from  it  as  "it  would  have 
bounded  from  a  brick  wall ;  but  it  checked  the 
advance. 

Mose  nourished  his  hands  over  his  head,  and 
after  trying  in  vain  to  keep  his  balance,  he  sprang 
into  the  air;  at  the  same  time  turning  his  body 
about  half-way  around  and  throwing  out  his  arms, 
so  that  when  he  came  down,  they  caught  across  the 
gunwale ;  and  there  he  hung  over  the  water. 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  203 

Tony  was  not  a  little  frightened  at  the  effect  of 
his  shot.  He  thought  that  the  man  was  about  to 
fall  into  the  river;  and  if  he  had,  he  would  have 
stood  a  fair  chance  of  drowning,  before  his  compan- 
ion could  have  gone  out  in  the  skiff  and  picked  him 
up.  But  even  while  these  thoughts  were  passing 
through  Tony's  mind,  he  began  to  wish  that  the 
lump  of  coal  had  been  larger  and  heavier,  and  that 
his  arm  had  been  stronger.  Mose  was  not  in  the 
least  injured  by  the  blow  he  had  received,  nor  was 
he  cowed  by  his  narrow  escape  from  being  knocked 
overboard.  He  still  held  fast  to  the  knife ;  and  the 
eyes  with  which  he  glared  at  the  boy  over  the  gun- 
wale, were  fairly  ablaze  with  fury. 

"What  you  doin'  dar,  Jeff?"  he  shouted,  as  he 
drew  himself  up,  and  threw  one  foot  over  the  side 
of  the  barge.  "  Can't  you  frow  chunks  just  as  well, 
an'  mebbe  better 'n  he  kin  ?" 

These  words  seemed  to  arouse  the  other  negro, 
who  had  halted  and  been  on  the  point  of  turning 
back,  when  he  witnessed  his  companion's  discomfi- 
ture. He  quickly  jumped  down  into  the  barge ; 
and  Tony,  who  had  been  indulging  in  the  hope  that 
he  could  hold  the  robbers  at  bay  until  the  tug  hove 


204  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

in  sight,  lost  all  heart  when  he  saw  him  begin  to 
gather  up  the  coal.  He  looked  about  the  leek  and 
saw  at  a  glance,  that  if  the  negroes  were  going  to 
adopt  his  own  mode  of  fighting,  it  would  be  impos- 
sible for  him  to  defend  his  position.  They  would 
have  a  thousand  bushels  of  coal  within  their  reach, 
while  Tony  had  not  more  than  a  dozen  lumps,  and 
some  of  these  were  too  small  to  be  of  any  service. 
Two  of  the  biggest  of  these  lumps,  Tony  in  his  des- 
peration put  to  a  good  use.  With  one  of  them  he 
knocked  Jeff  flat,  just  as  he  was  preparing  to  rise 
to  his  feet  with  an  armful  of  coal ;  and  with  the 
other,  he  inflicted  a  severe  cut  upon  the  hand  of 
Mose,  causing  him  to  howl  with  rage  and  pain,  and 
to  drop  the  threatening  knife.  By  these  two  shots, 
Tony  unconsciously  created  evidence  that  was  strong 
enough  to  send  both  the  rogues  to  jail  as  soon  as 
they  reached  St.  Louis. 

Jeff  was  on  his  feet  again  in  an  instant,  and 
clearing  his  eyes  of  the  blood  which  trickled  into 
them  from  an  ugly  cut  in  his  forehead,  he  looked  all 
around  for  Tony  ;  but  the  latter  had  disappeared. 
The  moment  the  last  lump  of  coal  left  his  hand,  he 
sprang  across  the  narrow  deck,  and  seizing  a  rope 
that  was  made  fast  to  the  bitts,  descended  it  hand 
over  hand,  and  dropped  into  a  skiff  that  was  towing 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  205 

alongside  the  barge.  To  shove  off,  pick  up  the  oars 
and  put  the  skiff  in  rapid  motion  was  the  work  of 
scarcely  a  moment. 

"  Hyar  he  is,  Jeff,"  shouted  Mose,  who  had  at 
last  succeeded  in  climbing  up  and  seating  himself  on 
the  gunwale.  "  Knock  him  outen  dat  dar  boat,  if 
he  don't  come  back.  Bus'  de  bottom  in.  Do  some- 
thing mighty  lively,  kase  we's  gone  niggahs  if  dat 
dar  tug  kotch  us  hyar  !" 

Jeff  must  have  thought  so  too,  for  his  movements 
were  much  quicker  than  they  had  been  before.  He 
climbed  out  of  the  barge  to  the  deck  as  quickly  as 
he  could,  and  opened  a  hot  fire  upon  Tony,  who 
was  pulling  swiftly  away  from  the  dangerous  neigh- 
borhood ;  but  although  his  missiles  were  thrown  with 
power  sufficient  to  do  damage  if  they  had  hit  any- 
thing, they  all  went  wide  of  the  mark,  and  by  the 
time  Jeff's  companion  could  raise  himself  to  his  feet 
and  run  along  the  gunwale  to  the  deck,  the  boy  was 
safely  out  of  range.  Mose  fired  a  few  chunks  at 
him,  but  they  all  fell  short,  and  then  it  seemed  to 
dawn  upon  the  negroes  all  at  once1  that  their  prize 
had  slipped  through  their  fingers ;  that  they  had 
opened  the  doors  of  the  penitentiary  for  their  recep- 
tion, and  gained  nothing  by  it.  It  must  have  been 
some  such  thought  as  this  that  set  them  into  the 


206  GEORGE    AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

wild  war-dance  that  followed.  They  jumped  about 
the  deck,  stamped  their  feet,  and  whooped  and  swore 
at  the  top  of  their  voices ;  and  Mose  shook  his  knife 
at  Tony,  and  made  furious  gestures  with  the  weapon, 
just  to  show  what  he  would  do  if  he  only  possessed 
the  power. 

"  Well,  boys,"  said  Tony,  as  soon  as  he  could 
make  himself  heard,  u  it  looks  to  me  as  though  you 
were  in  for  it.  I've  got  this  thing  in  my  own 
hands.  You'll  stay  there  until  the  tug  comes,  and 
I'll  stay  here." 

"  No,  we  won't  stay  hyar,  nudder,"  shouted 
Mose,  in  reply.  "  We  kin  swim  to  de  shoah." 

"  You  try  it,  if  you  dare.  If  I  see  one  of  you 
take  to  the  water,  I'll  knock  him  on  the  head  with 
an  oar." 

Tony  had  not  only  brought  himself  safely  out  of 
a  very  dangerous  situation,  but  he  had  very  neatly 
turned  the  tables  upon  those  who  had  intended  to 
rob  him,  and  he  felt  very  jubilant  over  it.  Well,  it 
was  something  to  be  proud  of,  and  it  was  a  great 
pity  that  he  should  go  deliberately  to  work  and  spoil 
it  all  by  his  foolishness. 

"  I  have  earned  a  hundred  dollars  by  this  day's 
work,"  said  Tony,  as  he  wiped  the  big  drops  of 
perspiration  from  his  forehead,  "  and  as  soon  as  I 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  207 

get  it  safe  in  my  hands,  I  shall  bid  a  long  fare- 
well to  St.  Louis." 

Tony  uttered  these  last  words  very  slowly,  as  if 
he  were  talking  about  one  thing  and  thinking  about 
another.  And  so  he  was.  Why  should  he  return 
to  St.  Louis  at  all  ?  he  asked  himself.  Before  he 
left  home  that  morning,  something  had  prompted 
him  to  put  into  his  pocket  the  twenty-five  dollars  he 
had  saved  to  buy  his  sailor's  outfit  when  he  reached 
New  Orleans.  Why  not  add  to  that  at  least  a 
portion  of  the  amount  which  Mr.  Vandegriif  had 
told  him  he  might  retain  if  he  got  into  a  fight  with 
the  negroes  and  came  off  first  best  ?  It  is  true  that 
he  had  no  clothes  except  those  he  carried  on  his 
back,  and  he  told  himself  that  he  did  not  want  any 
more.  It  would  be  a  waste  of  time  to  go  back  to 
the  city  after  a  supply,  and  he  would  run  the  risk 
of  being  seen  by  somebody  when  he  crept  out  of  his 
father's  house  with  a  valise  in  his  hand.  There 
was  something  about  such  a  proceeding  that  did  not 
suit  Tony.  He  thought  it  would  make  him  looii 
too  much  like  a  sneak-thief.  Besides,  he  wanted  to 
forget  his  home  entirely,  and  he  could  not  do  it  so 
long  as  he  was  wearing  any  of  the  clothes  his 
father's  money  had  purchased  for  him. 


208  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

"  It  is  now  or  never,"  said  Tony,  to  himself. 
"  I  can  go  down  the  river  in  this  skiff  to  Cairo, 
purchasing  my  supplies  at  farm-houses  along  the 
way,  and  there  I  shall  find  some  Cincinnati  )r 
Pittsburgh  boat  whose  officers  will  not  question  me, 
because  they  are  not  acquainted  with  me.  I  don't 
feel  just  right  about  taking  that  money,  but  I  have 
fairly  earned  it — I  wouldn't  go  through  such  a 
battle  again  for  ten  times  one  hundred  dollars — and 
Mr.  Vandegriff  said  I  might  have  it.  Good-by  !" 
he  shouted,  waving  his  hand  to  the  negroes,  "I'll 
go  and  hurry  up  the  tug." 

As  Tony  said  this,  he  pulled  toward  the  Missouri 
shore,  and  when  he  had  got  out  of  the  current,  he 
turned  and  rowed  up  the  river.  As  long  as  he 
remained  in  sight  of  the  barge,  he  kept  his  eyes 
fastened  upon  the  negroes,  expecting  to  see  them 
take  to  the  wrater  and  strike  out  for  shore;  but  as 
they  did  nothing  of  the  kind,  the  boy  finally  came 
to  the  conclusion  that  they  could  not  swim.  At  last 
the  current  carried  them  and  their  floating  prison 
into  the  bend  around  which  the  Armada  had  disap- 
peared half  an  hour  before,  and  when  the  barge 
was  out  of  sight  behind  the  point,  Tony  ceased  his 
efforts  at  the  oars  and  began  to  look  about  him. 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

TONY  FINDS   A   FRIEND. 

fTIHE  first  thing  is  to  find  a  place  in  which 
-*-  to  hide  for  awhile,"  said  Tony,  to  himself. 
4  That  tug  can't  be  far  away — Mr.  Vandegriff  said 
she  would  come  up  with  the  barge  by  the  time  the 
Armada  had  taken  all  the  coal  she  wanted — and  I 
must  keep  out  of  sight  until  she  takes  the  barge  in 
tow  and  goes  up  the  river  again.  I  don't  know 
what  folks  will  think  when  she  goes  back  to  St. 
Louis  without  me,  and  I  don't  care,  either.  I  don't 
expect  to  see  any  of  them  again  for  long  years  to 
come.  I  will  send  Mr.  Vandegriff  his  money  as 
soon  as  I  reach  Cairo,  and  that  will  make  me  square 
with  him.  I  believe  that  is  the  spot  I  am  looking 
for." 

Tony  had  just  discovered  what  he  declared  to  be 
"the  finest  kind  of  a  hiding-place."     A  huge  tree 
14 


210  H 

which  had  been  undermined  by  the  water  had  sunk 
down  into  the  river,  and  now  lay  with  its  top  rest- 
ing upon  the  bank  and  its  roots  in  the  stream. 
These  roots  formed  a  mass  twelve  or  fifteen  feet 
square,  and  between  them  and  the  bank  there  was 
water  enough  to  float  the  skiff.  Tony  pulled  up  to 
examine  this  hiding-place,  his  movements  being 
accelerated  by  a  sound  which  just  then  came  to  his 
ears.  He  exerted  himself  to  the  utmost,  and  to  his 
great  relief  succeeded  in  running  his  skiff  behind 
the  roots  just  as  the  tug  came  around  the  point 
above.  Had  he  been  a  few  moments  later  he  would 
certainly  have  been  discovered. 

"A  miss  is  as  good  as  a  mile,"  panted  Tony,  as 
he  stretched  himself  out  under  the  thwarts  and 
looked  at  the  tug  through  an  opening  in  the  roots. 
"If  she  doesn't  see  me  now  she  never  will,  for  it 
will  be  pitch  dark  when  she  comes  back  with  the 
barge.  I'd  give  something  to  know  how  Jeff  and 
Mose  will  explain  my  disappearance." 

Tony  kept  his  eyes  fastened  upon  the  tug  as  she 
moved  swiftly  past  his  place  of  concealment,  and 
then  he  turned  around,  and  lying  with  his  face 
towaii  the  stern  of  the  skiff,  watched  her  until  she 
disappeared  around  the  bend  below.  It  was  pitch 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  211 

dark  when  her  lights  came  into  view  around  the 
point,  and  her  labored  puffing,  as  she  struggled 
against  the  current  with  her  heavy  burden,  became 
audible  to  the  ears  of  the  runaway.  Presently  she 
began  to  whistle,  and  she  kept  it  up  at  irregular 
intervals. 

"That's  for  me,"  thought  Tony.  "Captain, 
you're  only  wasting  steam.  I  hear  you,  but  I'll  not 
pay  any  attention  to  you." 

In  about  two  hours  the  tug  passed  Tony's  hiding- 
place  the  second  time,  and  when  the  sound  of  her 
exhaust  began  to  grow  fainter,  the  boy  made  his 
skiff  fast  to  one  of  the  roots  and  lay  down  to 
sleep.  He -slept,  too,  and  his  slumber  was  not  in 
the  least  disturbed  by  regretful  dreams  of  the  home 
he  had  deserted.  It  needs  contact  with  the  world 
and  a  few  hard  knocks  from  it  to  show  a  discon- 
tented boy  what  home  is  worth,  and  Tony  had  not 
yet  received  any  of  these. 

He  awoke  the  next  morning  at  daylight,  hungry 
as  a  wolf,  and  impatient  to  reach  Cairo  in  order  that 
he  might  send  Mr.  Vandegriff's  money  to  him. 
He  was  in  a  great  hurry  to  be  rid  of  it,  for  his 
experience  on  the  barge  had  satisfied  him  that  he 
was  not  altogether  safe  so  long  as  it  was  in  his 


212  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

possession.  The  first  thing  was  to  look  out  for  a 
breakfast,  and  this  he  obtained  at  a  farm-house  he 
found  about  five  miles  down  the  river.  At  this 
place  he  also  purchased  a  basket  and  cooked  viands 
enough  to  fill  it.  He  did  not  want  to  go  supperless 
to  bed  again  if  he  could  help  it. 

Tony  passed  two  more  nights  on  the  river,  and 
by  that  time  he  had  become  heartily  disgusted  with 
this  mode  of  travelling.  Whenever  he  became  tired 
of  rowing,  he  drew  in  his  oars  and  allowed  the 
skiff  to  float  with  the  current;  but  during  these 
periods  of  rest,  his  progress  was  very  slow,  and  he 
was  so  impatient  to  reach  his  journey's  end,  that  he 
kept  the  oars  in  motion  almost  all  the  time.  He 
had  to  be  constantly  on  the  alert,  for  there  was  a 
good  many  boats  passing  up  and  down  the  river, 
and  Tony  made  it  a  point  to  go  ashore  and  hide  in 
the  bushes  every  time  one  hove  in  sight.  He  was 
afraid  that  some  of  the  pilots  would  see  and  recog- 
nise him.  He  was  plied  with  questions  every  time 
he  stopped  for  supplies.  Canoeing  was  not  as 
popular  in  those  days  as  it  has  since  become,  and 
the  people  living  along  the  river  had  not  grown 
accustomed  to  the  sight  of  solitary  travellers  making 
their  way  down  the  stream  in  this  primitive  fashion. 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  213 

One  long-haired,  unkempt  Missounan,  after  filling 
his  basket,  informed  him  that  he  had  given  him  a 
good  looking  over,  and  that  if  anybody  came  that 
way  in  a  day  or  two  looking  for  a  stolen  boat,  he 
would  be  able  to  give  an  accurate  description  of  him. 
Tony  passed  the  little  town  of  Cape  Girardeau 
bright  and  early  one  morning,  and  shortly  after 
twelve  o'clock  he  looked  over  the  levee  on  the 
Illinois  side,  and  obtained  his  first  view  of  the  city 
of  Cairo.  He  at  once  directed  his  course  across 
the  river,  and  running  the  bow  of  his  skiff  high  and 
dry  upon  the  bank,  he  left  it  and  the  basket  for  the 
use  of  the  first  person  who  might  be  in  need  of 
them,  and  set  out  for  the  city  on  foot.  In  this  way 
he  saved  himself  a  good  deal  of  hard  work,  for  it 
would  have  taken  him  two  or  three  hours  to  row 
around  the  point  and  up  the  Ohio  river  to  the  wharf- 
boat.  As  it  was,  he  reached  the  St.  Charles  hotel 
in  about  half  an  hour,  and  having  purchased  two 
sheets  of  note-paper  and  an  envelope  from  the 
news-agent,  he  went  into  the  office  and  sat  down  to 
write  a  letter  to  Mr.  Vandegriff.  Having  made  up 
his  mind  what  he  wanted  to  say,  his  pen  moved 
rapidly,  and  in  twenty  minutes  the  letter  was 
finished.  It  contained  a  circumstantial  account  of 


214  GEORGE    AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

the  battle  on  the  coal-barge,  and  wound  up  with 
these  words : — 

"  You  told  me  that  if  those  negroes  attempted 
to  rob  me,  and  I  saved  your  money  for  you, 
I  could  keep  a  hundred  dollars  out  of  it  and 
hand  you  the  balance.  You  will  see,  by  reference 
to  the  book  which  I  send  you  with  this  letter,  that 
I  have  kept  out  fifty  dollars  of  it,  which  I  need  to 
pay  my  expenses  to  the  place  where  I  am  going. 
If  you  should  happen  to  see  my  father,  I  wish  you 
would  tell  him  for  me  that  I  have  decided  to  strike 
out  for  myself.  I  inclose  you  bank  check  for  the 
rest  of  the  money." 

When  Tony  read  the  letter  over  to  correct  the 
mistakes  he  had  made  in  his  hurried  writing,  and 
came  to  this  part  of  it,  he  could  not  help  telling 
himself  that  it  was  rather  a  heartless  way  of  taking 
leave  of  his  relations  ;  but  he  was  in  a  great  hurry 
to  get  through  with  the  business  he  Tiad  to  do  before 
the  bank  closed,  and  he  had  only  time  to  add,  "  Give 
my  love  to  my  mother."  Then  a  sharp  pang  shot 
through  his  heart.  He  had  never  cherished  much 
affection  for  his  father,  who,  being  completely  en- 
grossed in  his  business,  scarcely  ever  spoke  to  Tony, 
except  to  take  him  to  task  for  something  he  had 


LIFE    TX   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  2~  & 

done.     But  his  mother ;  could  he  leave  her  in  this 
way  ? 

"  It  isn't  too  late  yet,"  thought  the  runaway, 
settling  back  in  his  chair,  and  nolding  the  lettei  off 
at  arms'  length.  "  If  I  leave  town  this  afternoon  by 
rail,  I  can  be  in  St.  Louis  to-morrow  morning,  and 
1  have  half  a  notion — no,  I  haven't,  either.  Father 
would  give  me  a  regular  overhauling  for  going  away 
on  that  barge  without  first  asking  his  permission  (I 
wasn't  fool  enough  to  do  that,  for  I  know  he  would 
have  said  i  no'  most  emphatically),  and  what  excuse 
could  I  make  for  dodging  the  tug  ?  No,  sir ;  this 
thing  has  gone  so  far  that  there's  no  backing  out 
now." 

As  the  boy  said  this  he  drew  his  hand  hastily 
across  his  eyes,  folded  and  addressed  the  letter, 
and  placed  it  into  the  account  book,  which  he  put 
into  his  pocket.  It  was  necessary  that  the  book 
should  go  with  the  letter,  so  that  Mr.  Vandegriff 
might  know  how  many  bushels  of  coal  the  Armada 
had  taken  from  the  barge. 

u  I  suppose  there  is  a  bank  in  this  city  ?"  said  he, 
as  he  approached  the  clerk's  counter. 

"  Yes,  sir,"  was  the  reply  ;  "  it  is  in  the  block  up 
the  levee." 


216 

"Where  is  the  express  office  ?" 

"  Two  doors  this  side  of  the  bank;  same  block." 

After  thanking  the  clerk  for  this  information, 
Tony  hurried  away.  He  had  no  trouble  in  finding 
the  bank,  and  after  he  had  counted  out  fifty  dollars 
of  Mr.  VandegrifFs  money,  he  handed  the  rest, 
together  with  the  letter,  to  the  cashier,  with  the 
request  that  he  would  give  him  a  check  on  St. 
Louis  for  it,  made  payable  to  the  person  whose 
name  was  on  the  envelope.  The  cashier  complied, 
and  when  Tony  had  placed  the  check  in  the  letter, 
and  the  letter  in  the  account  book,  he  started  back 
for  the  express  office.  The  clerk  he  found  there 
was  accommodating  enough  to  supply  him  with  paper 
and  twine,  and  when  he  had  wrapped  the  book  and 
its  contents  up  in  a  neat  package,  and  the  clerk  had 
further  secured  it  by  sealing  it  with  wax,  Tony 
paid  the  charges  on  it  and  went  out." 

"  That's  done,"  said  he,  as  he  crossed  the  rail- 
road track  and  bent  his  steps  toward  the  nearest 
wharf-boat,  ''and  all  I  have  to  do  now  is,  to  find  a 
boat  that  is  going  down  the  river." 

Just  then  the  afternoon  train  came  in  from  the 
north,  and  the  steamer  lying  alongside  the  wharf- 
boat  began  to  whistle.  Toward  her  the  boy  directed 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  217 

bis  course ;  and  ten  minutes  later,  lie  was  seated  on 
the  boiler- deck  with  his  chair  tipped  back,  his  feet 
on  the  railing,  his  thumbs  hooked  in  the  armholes 
of  his  vest,  and  a  ticket  for  Memphis  in  his  pocket. 
When  he  reached  that  city,  he  took  passage  on  a 
steamer  bound  for  New  Orleans,  at  which  place  he 
arrived  early  in  the  morning.  He  stayed  on  board 
the  boat  long  enough  to  get  his  breakfast,  and  then 
sauntered  out  to  take  a  look  at  things  along  the 
river.  He  had  never  been  in  the  city  before,  and 
and  if  he  had  come  there  under  different  circum- 
stances, he  would  have  been  glad  to  spend  a  day  or 
two  in  seeing  the  sights ;  but  he  was  too  full  of  his 
idea  of  becoming  a  sailor,  to  waste  any  time  in  that 
way.  The  sooner  he  found  a  chance  to  ship,  the 
sooner  he  would  be  on  the  ocean. 

A  few  minutes  after  he  left  the  steamer,  he 
obtained  his  first  view  of  a  sea-going  vessel.  Of 
course,  he  was  disappointed  in  her ;  we  generally 
are  disappointed,  when  we  see  for  the  first  time 
something  of  which  we  have  read  and  heard  a  great 
deal,  and  which  we  have  often  longed  to  examine 
for  ourselves.  She  was  not  near  as  large  as  he  had 
expected  to  find  her ;  and  there  were  many  things 
about  her,  that  did  not  suit  Tony's  idea  of  marine 


218  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

architecture.  While  he  stood  on  the  wharf  looking 
at  her,  and  wondering  if  anybody  would  order  him 
ashore  if  he  should  step  aboard  to  take  a  closer  view 
of  her,  he  became  aware  that  he  was  an  object  of 
interest  to  a  boy  a  little  older  than  himself,  who  was 
leaning  over  the  rail,  staring  at  Tony  as  hard  as  the 
latter  was  staring  at  the  vessel.  He  was  a  sailor, 
that  was  plain  enough 'to  be  seen;  and  he  might 
have  been  a  very  good-looking  one  too,  if  he  had 
taken  a  little  more  pains  with  his  personal  appear- 
ance. He  wore  a  tarpaulin,  which  was  pushed  as 
far  back  on  his  head  as  it  could  go  without  falling 
off;  a  blue  flannel  shirt  with  a  wide  collar,  and 
trowsers  of  the  same  material,  which  were  thrus.t 
into  a  pair  of  heavy  boots.  His  face  was  almost 
copper- colored ;  and  his  hands,  which  were  large  and 
bony,  were  profusely  tattooed  with  India  ink.  He 
chewed  tobacco,  too,  and  threw  away  a  big  quid 
before  addressing  Tony. 

"Want  to  ship?"  said  he. 

"That's  what  I  am  here  for,"  answered  Tony. 
"  Do  you  allow  folks  aboard  there  ?" 

"  0,  yes ;  come  on.  You  don't  look  like  a  sailor 
man,"  he  added,  as  Tony  sprang  over  the  rail  and 
approached  him. 


LIFE   IN  THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  219 

"And  when  you  first  went  to  sea,  you  didn'fc 
look  any  more  like  a  sailor  than  I  do,"  replied 
Tony.  "  I  know  I  am  green,  but  I  can  learn  as 
well  as  anybody,  can't  I  ?" 

"  Of  course  you  can,"  said  the  boy,  backing  up 
against  the  rail,  and  running  his  eyes  over  Tony's 
clothes.  "  But  I  don't  know  whether  you  can  stand 
the  racket  or  not.  You  don't  look  to  be  any  too 
stout." 

"  I  shouldn't  care  to  measure  strength  with  you," 
said  Tony,  with  a  smile,  "  but  still  I  have  got  a 
pretty  good  muscle,  although  I  have  never  done  a 
day's  manual  labor  in  my  life." 

"What  kind  of  labor  is  that?"  asked  the  young 
sailor. 

*  I  mean  that  I  have  never  worked  with  my 
hands.  I  have  always  worked  with  my  head," 
explained  Tony. 

"  0  !  Then  you  are  not  the  stutf  that  sailors  are 
made  of,"  was  the  rather  disheartening  rejoinder. 
*'I  didn't  think  you  could  stand  the  racket." 

"Is  it  a  hard  life?" 

"Well,  it  aint  an  easy  one — not  by  no  means." 

"  Then  why  don't  you  quit  it  and  go  at  some- 
thing else?" 


220  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  Me  ?  0,  I  can't.  There's  nothing  else  I  could 
do.  I  have  been  to  sea  ever  since  I  was  eight 
years  old,  and  I  am  now  seventeen." 

"You  ought  to  be  a  first-class  sailor,"  said  Tony. 

"  I  can  hand,  reef  and  steer  as  well  as  the  rest 
of  them,  if  that's  what  you  mean,"  replied  the 
young  sailor,  rather  proudly.  "I  am  an  able 
seaman,  and  I  should  think  I  had  ought  to  be. 
I  made  three  voyages  as  second  mate  of  a  little 
coaster." 

"Are  you  an  officer  of  this  ship?"  inquired 
Tony. 

"  This  aint  a  ship,  you  lubber.  She's  a  brig." 
"You  see,"  he  added,  in  a  little  milder  tone,  "a 
ship  has  three  masts,  and  this  has  only  two.  No, 
I  arn  not  an  officer.  I  always  have  to  go  before  the 
mast  on  long  voyages,  such  as  the  one  we  have  just 
made,  but  then  I  like  them  better  than  I  do  short 
ones.  If  you  Jj^ave  got  any  book-learning  you 
might  get  to  be  an  officer  in  a  few  years.  If 
you  want  to  ship  I  know  where  there  is  a  chance 
for  you." 

"Do  you?"  exclaimed  Tony,  eagerly.  "I  am 
ever  so  much  obliged  to  you  for  telling  me  of  it.  I 
do  want  to  ship." 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  221 

"  All  right !  Come  on.  There's  a  berth  for 
somebody  aboard  my  old  vessel,  the  Princeton," 
said  the  young  sailor,  as  he  and  Tony  sprang  out 
upon  the  wharf.  "  She's  the  one  I  was  second  mate 
of,  you  know.  I  was  down  there  this  morning,  and 
the  old  man  told  me,  if  I  heard  anybody  say  he 
wanted  to  ship,  to  send  him  along ;  but  I  guess  I 
had  better  go  with  you,  for  you  might  not  be  able 
to  find  her.  If  the  captain  takes  you,  you  will  have 
the  same  berth  I  did  when  I  first  went  to  sea." 

"  What  was  it  ?"  asked  Tony. 

"Jemmy  Ducks  !" 

"  I  don't  understand  you.  Who's  Jemmy 
Ducks?" 

"  Well,  he's  a  sort  of  lackey  to  everybody.  He 
has  to  keep  the  cabin  in  order,  help  the  cook,  and 
haul  at  the  sheets  ;  and  he  works  for  kicks  instead 
of  ha'pence." 

"  Kicks  !"  exclaimed  Tony.     "Who'll  kick  me?" 

"  All  hands  and  the  cook.  But,  bless  you,  that 
won't  hurt  you.  It  only  makes  you  tough  and 
waterproof.  The  only  way  is  to  work  hard ;  keep 
still,  and  say  nothing  to  nobody  till  your  time 
comes,  and  then  let  him  have  it,  good  and  strong." 

"  Let  who  have  it?" 


222  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

"  Why,  if  you  tend  to  your  business  straight  and 
square  you'll  get  ahead,  of  course  ;  and  then  you'll 
go  for  the  fellow  that  takes  your  place." 

"  Must  I  kick  somebody  who  has  never  done  me 
any  harm,  simply  because  somebody  else  has  kicked 
me?"  cried  Tony. 

"  If  you  want  to  get  square,  that's  the  only  way 
you  can  do  it,"  said  his  new  friend,  indifferently. 

If  Tony  had  never  known  before,  that  it  will  not 
do  to  put  implicit  faith  in  everything  one  reads  in 
books,  he  knew  it  now.  In  his  favorite  sea-novels 
there  was  no  mention  made  of  the  hardships  of  a 
sailor's  life,  and  the  cruelties  that  are  practised  upon 
him.  His  existence  was  described  as  one  of  ease 
and  pleasure.  Of  course  there  were  wrecks,  and 
fio-hts  with  pirates  and  mutinous  crews  ;  but  the 
typical  sailor,  who  was  always  loyal  to  his  captain, 
rather  enjoyed  such  things  as  these,  for  they  served 
to  break  the  monotony  of  long  voyages,  and  gave 
him  opportunity  to  show  his  skill  and  courage,  and 
win  a  reward.  The  constant  annoyances  and  pun- 
ishments to  which  a  foremast  hand  is  sometimes 
subjected,  were  never  spoken  of;  but  Tony's  new 
friend  referred  to  them  as  though  they  were  matters 
of  everyday  occurrence.  The  runaway  found  that 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  223 

they  were,  too.  He  began  to  believe  that  he  had 
made  a  mistake,  and  while  he  was  informing  him- 
self of  the  fact,  his  companion  led  him  down  to  a 
pier  and  across  to  a  little  schooner  that  lay  on  the 
opposite  side.  This  wras  the  Princeton — an  ill- 
looking  craft  to  bear  so  dignified  a  name.  She  was 
not  more  than  half  as  large  as  the  brig  to  which 
Tony's  new  acquaintance  belonged,  and  neither  did 
her  deck  present  the  same  scene  of  neatness  and 
order. 

"  She's  bound  for  Rio,  so  the  old  man  told  me 
this  morning ;  and  on  the  way,  she's  going  to  stop 
at  Havana,"  said  the  young  sailor,  as  he  and  Tony 
fell  in  behind  a  couple  of  longshoremen,  who  were 
rolling  a  heavy  cask  down  the  gang-plank. 

"  To  Rio  Janeiro  !"  exclaimed  Tony.  "  Why, 
that's  in  Brazil.  This  little  brig  can't  go  there." 

"This  is  a  schooner,"  replied  the  young  sailor, 
with  some  contempt  in  his  tones. 

"  She  has  two  masts,  just  like  yours." 

"  She's  got  two  masts,  I  know,  but  she  ain't  like 
my  vessel.  Can't  you  see  that  she  is  a  fore-and- 
after,  while  mine  is  square  rigged?" 

This  was  all  Greek  to  Tony,  who  could  only  gaze 
about  the  vessel  and  look  bewildered. 


224  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  Avast,  there !"  suddenly  cried  his  companion, 
seizing  him  by  the  arm  and  pulling  him  away  from 
an  open  hatch,  into  which  he  would  have  walked 
in  a  moment  more.  "  Don't  fall  into  the  hold  and 
break  your  neck  before  you  sign  articles.  Say, 
captain,"  he  added,  as  he  and  Tony  approached  a 
short,  broad-shouldered,  red-faced  man,  who  had 
just  ascended  the  companion-ladder.  "  You  told 
me  this  morning,  that  you  wanted  a  cabin-boy. 
How  do  you  like  the  looks  of  this  fellow?" 

The  captain  run  his  eyes  over  Tony's  face  and 
figure,  took  one  or  two  pulls  at  his  pipe,  and  said 
in  a  hoarse  voice  : 

"  He  looks  well  enough,  but  can  he  do  any- 
thing?" 

"  Nary  thing,"  replied  the  young  sailor,  with 
refreshing  candor.  "  Can't  you  see  for  yourself 
that  his  mouth  is  always  gaping  like  a  contribution 
box  for  dimes  ?  He  don't  know  a  schooner  from 
a  brig.  You'll  have  to  break  him  in." 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  225 


.CHAPTER  XIII. 

ON   BOARD   THE    PRINCETON. 

ff^HE  captain  gave  Tony  another  good  looking 
over,  after  which  he  took  his  pipe  out  of  his 
mouth  long  enough  to  say  "  Humph !"  Then  he 
put  it  hack  again. 

"  Oh,  he  can  make  up  the  bunks  and  sweep  the 
cabin  and  help  the  doctor,  if  he  don't  know  the 
ropes,"  exclaimed  the  sailor,  who  thought  he  ought 
to  say  a  good  word  for  Tony,  seeing  that  the  latter 
did  not  know  enough  to  say  it  for  himself.  *'•  You 
can  do  that,  can't  you,  shipmate?" 

"No,  I  can't,"  answered  Tony.  "  I  don't  know 
anything  about  medicine  :  I  can't  help  the  doctor." 

The  young  sailor  stared  at  the  captain,  and  the 
captain  looked  hard  at  Tony.  Then  they  both 
looked  up  at  the  main  top-mast,  and  broke  out 

into  loud  peals  of  laughter.     After  that  the  skipper 
15 


226  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OK, 

also  swore  a   good-natured  oath,  and   asked    Tony 
where  he  lived. 
'"  In  St.  Louis,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Why  didn't  you  stay  there  ?" 

"  Because  I  didn't  want  to.  I  would  like  to  see 
something  of  the  world,  and  earn  a  living  at  the 
same  time." 

"All  right;  I'll  take  you." 

"At  how  much  a  month,  captain  ?"  asked  the 
sailor. 

"  Eight  dollars,"  replied  the  skipper. 

"  That's  settled,"  said  the  sailor.  "  Have  you 
got  any  money  ?  You  want  an  outfit — some  bedding 
and  clothes  that  will  do  to  work  in." 

"  Oh,  yes,  I've  got  enough  for  that,"  replied 
Tony. 

"  Then  let's  go  ashore,  and  I'll  show  you  where 
to  get  them.  I  am  my  own  master  to-day,  for  we 
shan't  hegin  to  break  cargo  until  to-morrow.  When 
do  you  sail,  captain  ?" 

"About  four  o'clock.  Look  here,  Bradley,  I'll 
leave  that  greenhorn  in  your  charge,  and  I  want 
you  to  bring  him  back  as  soon  as  you  can.  And 
you,  Abraham,"  added  the  skipper,  looking  at  the 
runaway, 


LIFE    IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  227 

"I  am  Anthony  Richardson,"  replied  the  owner 
of  that  name.  "  Tony,  for  short." 

"  Well,  Tony,  when  you  come  back,  report  to  the 
doctor." 

As  the  boy  was  about  turning  away  without 
making  any  reply,  the  captain  called  sharply  after 
him. 

"  Did  you  hear  me  ?"  he  demanded. 

"  Say  '  ay,  ay,  sir  !'  "  whispered  Bradley,  giving 
the  runaway  a  prod  in  the  ribs  with  his  elbow. 

Tony  gave  the  required  response,  and  the  captain 
continued : 

"  Hereafter  keep  your  ears  open,  and  remember 
your  manners." 

"  You  had  better  bear  that  in  mind,"  said  Brad- 
ley, when  he  and  Tony  were  once  more  ashore. 
"  Whenever  an  officer  gives  you  an  order,  say  '  ay, 
ay,  sir!'  and  don'i  waste  any  time  about  it,  either." 

"  It  hurts  me  to  be  obliged  to  show  so  much 
respect  to  such  a  fellow  as  that  captain  is,"  replied 
Tony.  "  I  have  had  better  men  than  he  say  *  sir* 
to  me." 

"That's  what  I  thought,"  said  Bradley;  "and 
them  are  the  fellows  that  you  had  ought  to  have 
stayed  with.  But  that's  all  over  now.  The  respect 


228  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

that's  paid  to  a  man  on  board  ship  don't  depend 
upon  the  position  he  holds  ashore,  and  you'll  find  it 
out.  An  able  seaman  who  hasn't  got  a  cent  to  his 
name,  is  worth  more  in  a  gale  of  wind  than  a  lands- 
man with  a  million  dollars  in  his  pocket.". 

"I  suppose  that's  so,"  said  Tony,  with  a  sigh. 
"I  suppose,  too,  that  I  shall  be  hauled  over  the 
coals  a  good  many  times  before  I  know  just  what  is 
required  of  me.  But,  Bradley,  I  can't  be  of  any 
use  to  the  doctor." 

"  Yes,  you  can.     The  doctor  is  the  cook." 

"  0  !"  exclaimed  Tony.  "I  understand.  But 
"what  makes  the  old  man  so  cross  ?" 

"  He  ain't  cross ;  it's  only  just  his  way.  You 
won't  have  any  trouble  with  him  to  speak  of,  if  you 
only  do  your  duty  up  to  the  handle.  But  there's 
one  man  there  that  you  had  better  look  out  for. 
He's  the  captain's  pet ;  and  pets  on  shipboard  are  a 
nuisance." 

"I'll  not  have  any  thing,  to  do  with  him,  if  you 
will  tell  me  who  he  is,"  said  Tony. 

"  You  can't  help  yourself.  He's  the  first  mate. 
Now,  I'll  tell  you,  as  near  as  I  can,  just  what  you 
will  have  to  do,  and  the  better  you  do  it,  the  less 
trouble  you'll  get  into." 


LIFE  IN  THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  229 

Bradley  then  went  on  to  describe  the  duties  that 
were  imposed  upon  himself  when  he  first  went  to 
sea,  and  told  of  a  good  many  difficulties  he  had 
fallen  into,  which  he  could  have  avoided  if  he  had 
had  a  friend  at  the  start  to  point  them  out  to  him. 
Tony  listened  with  all  his  ears,  and  treasured  every- 
thing up  in  his  memory.  Bradley  told  him  what 
he  had  to  expect  in  pretty  plain  language,  and  it 
was  a  wonder  that  Tony's  courage  did  not  give  way 
altogether. 

"  If  a  sailor  has  to  work  so  hard,  what  is  there 
in  the  life  that  is  so  fascinating  ?"  said  he.  "  What 
is  there  about  it  that  is  pleasant?"  he  added,  as 
Bradley  turned  toward  him  with  an  inquiring 
look. 

''There's  nothing  about  it  that  I  ever  heard  of 
that  is  pleasant  for  poor  Jack,"  was  the  reply. 
"  Some  of  us  like  it,  in  spite  of  the  hard  work  and 
harder  fare,  but  the  most  of  the  men  who  are  before 
the  mast  to-day  are  looking  forward  to  the  time 
when  they  can  quit  the  sea  and  settle  down  on 
shore.  It's  the  captains  that  have  the  bully  times. 
If  you  could  see  the  master  of  a  fine  ship  come  out 
of  his  cabin  of  a  pleasant  afternoon,  when  the  wind 
is  fair  and  everything  draws,  and  sit  down  on  his 


230  GEORGE   AT  THE   WHEEL;   OR, 

quarter-deck  and  smoke  his  cigar,  you  would  say 
that  he  was  the  happiest  man  in  the  world.  Those 
old  fellows  are  happy,  and  some  of  them  are  rich, 
too.  Let's  go  in  here  and  see  what  we  can  find 
that  is  worth  looking  at." 

So  saying,  Bradley  led  the  way  into  a  cheap 
clothing  store  near  the  levee,  in  which  were  to  be 
found  all  articles  of  necessity  and  luxury  required 
by  sea-faring  men ;  at  least  that  was  what  the 
advertisement  in  the  window  said.  If  Tony  had 
been  left  to  himself  he  would  not  have  known  what 
to  ask  for;  but  Bradley  selected  the  articles  for 
him,  and  he  went  about  it  as  though  he  understood 
it.  Having  purchased  a  good  many  outfits  for  him- 
self, he  knew  almost  to  a  penny  what  a  shirt  or  a 

0 
hat  was  worth,  and  setting  his  own   price  upon  it, 

told  the  shop-keeper  that  he  could  take  it  or  leave 
it  alone — just  as  he  pleased.  The  consequence  was 
that  he  got  the  outfit  for  much  less  money  than 
Tony  would  have  been  obliged  to  pay  for  the  same 
articles.  It  was  not  a  very  extensive  one,  but 
Bradley  assured  him  that  it  would  answer  until  he 
could  earn  money  enough  to  add  to  it.  When 
everything  had  been  paid  for,  the  clothes  were  put 
into  a  canvas-bag,  the  mattrass  was  wrapped  up  in  a 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  231 

pair  of  blankets,  and  each  boy  shouldered  a  bundle 
and  set  out  to  return  to  the  Princeton.  Tony's 
money  had  not  much  more  than  paid  his  expenses, 
for  he  had  only  fifteen  dollars  left. 

Arriving  at  the  Princeton,  Bradley  led  the  way 
at  once  into  the  forecastle,  and  throwing  his  bundle 
into  the  only  empty  bunk  he  found  there,  laughed 
heartily  at  the  expression  of  blank  amazement  he 
saw  on  Tony's  face.  The  latter  had  read  much  of 
the  forecastle,  and  now  he  saw  one  for  the  first 
time.  He  could  hardly  bring  himself  to  believe, 
that  eight  men  could  stow  themselves  away  there. 
It  was  very  small  and  dark,  and  pervaded  by  an 
odor  that  Tony  did  not  like. 

"  It's  mostly  tobacco  smoke,"  said  Bradley,  "and 
there's  a  little  tar,  slush  and  bilge-water  mixed  up 
with  it.  It's  nothing  when  you  get  used  to  it." 

"But  I  don't  see  how  I  can  stand  it,"  said  Tony, 
heaving  a  deep  sigh  as  he  thought  of  his  pleasant, 
little  room  at  Kirk  wood,  with  its  neat  writing-desk, 
well-filled  bookcase  and  easy  chairs.  "  I  have  been 
used  to  better  things  at  home." 

"Yes,  I  thought  so,  when  I  first  3lapped  my 
peepers  onto  you,"  said  Bradley,  "and  there's  where 
you  ought  to  have  stayed.  But  since  you  are  bent 


232  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OE, 

on  snuffing  salt  water,  it  may  comfort  you  to  know, 
that  better  men  than  you  have  lived  in  just  such 
places  as  this ;  and  that  some  of  those  same  men 
are  now  masters  of  our  finest  ships — East  Indiamen, 
mail  steamers  and  crafts  like  them.  The  only  way 
to  make  a  sailor  out  of  a  fellow  is,  to  shove  him  in 
at  the  hawse-hole,  and  let  him  work  his  way  aft, 
without  help  from  anybody." 

While  the  young  sailor  was  speaking,  he  was  busy 
making  up  Tony's  bed  in  the  empty  bunk,  which 
was  in  the  lower  tier  and  in  the  darkest  corner  of 
the  forecastle.  This  work  took  up  scarcely  two 
minutes  of  his  time,  for  all  he  had  to  do,  was  tc 
put  the  mattrass  in  and  spread  the  blankets  over 
it. 

"  There  you  are,"  said  he,  when  he  had  finished 
his  task.  "  Now  when  you  are  ready  to  turn  in, 
you  can  use  your  clothes-bag  for  a  pillow.  Is  there 
anything  more  I  can  do  for  you  ?" 

"I  don't  think  of  anything,"  answered  Tony. 
"  I  am  very  grateful  to  you  for  the  service  you  have 
rendered  me." 

"Belay  that,"  said  Bradley,  hastily.  "It's  all 
right.  If  I  was  going  with  you,  I  could  give  you  a 
hint  now  and  then  that  would  be  of  use  to  you." 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  233 

"Why  can't  you  go  ?"  exclaimed  Tony. 

"  Because  the  crew  is  all  shipped — the  bedding 
in  these  bunks  shows  that — and  I  am  not  yet  dis- 
charged from  the  brig.  I  want  iny  money  before  I 
leave  her,  and  I  don't  know  when  I  shall  get  it. 
It  depends  upon  the  work  there  is  to  be  done. 
Good-by !  Who  knows  but  you  and  I  may  some 
day  reef  a  top-sail  together  in  a  gale  of  wind  ?  Now, 
pull  off  those  shore  duds,  and  put  on  one  of  the  suits 
I  bought  for  you.  When  you  have  done  that,  go 
on  deck  and  report  to  the  doctor,  as  the  old  man 
told  you  to  do." 

Bradley,  having  shaken  hands  with  the  runaway, 
mounted  the  ladder  that  led  to  the  deck ;  while 
Tony,  remembering  that  his  new  friend  had  told 
him  that  promptness  in  obeying  orders,  was  of  the 
utmost  importance  on  ship-board,  made  all  haste  to 
pull  off  his  fine  clothes  and  put  on  one  of  his  new 
suits.  He  was  very  lonely  now  that  Bradley  was 
gone,  and  for  the  first  time  since  leaving  St.  Louis, 
he  began  to  be  homesick. 

"  I  am  really  afraid  I  have  made  a  mistake,'* 
thought  he,  as  he  packed  his  clothes  carefully  away 
in  his  bag.  "  Now,  that  I  have  got  out  into  the 
world,  I  find  that  it  doesn't  look  just  as  1  thought  it 


234  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

would.  Instead  of  being  my  own  master,  as  I 
supposed  I  should  be,  it  seems  that  I  shall  have 
more  people  to  rule  me  than  I  ever  had  before.  I 
don't  much  like  the  idea  of  being  ordered  around 
by  such  a  fellow  as  that  captain ;  and  then  there's 
the  cook.  What  if  he  should  happen  to  be  a 
darkey  ?" 

Having  prepared  himself  for  work,  Tony  went  on 
deck  and  made  his  way  toward  the  cabin,  intending 
to  ask  the  skipper  where  he  should  go  to  find  the 
cook,  an  idea  which,  if  it  had  been  carried  out, 
would  have  got  him  into  trouble  immediately.  But, 
fortunately  for  him,  he  learned  what  he  wanted  to 
know  without  making  any  inquiries  of  the  captain. 
Passing  a  little  house  on  deck,  he  looked  into  it,  and 
saw  a  negro  banging  the  pots  and  kettles  about. 
There  was  a  stove  in  it,  and  preparations  for  dinner 
were'  going  on.  Tony's  heart  sank  within  him. 
This  was  the  galley,  and  beyond  a  doubt  the  man 
before  him  was  the  cook. 

"  Perhaps  it  would  be  well  to  show  him  at  the 
start  that  I  shall  stand  no  nonsense  from  Mm" 
thought  Tony,  as  he  leaned  his  arms  on  the  window 
sill,  and  looked  into  the  galley.  "  Well,  Snowball," 
said  he,  "is  there  anything  I  can  do  for  you?" 


LIFE   IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  235 

"Who  is  you?"  demanded  the  negro,  plunging  a 
long-handled  fork  into  one  of  the  kettles  on  the 
stove. 

"  I  am  the  cabin  boy,  and  the  old  man  told  me 
to  report  to  you,"  replied  Tony. 

The  cook  turned  upon  him  like  a  flash  when  he 
heard  this.  "  Look  heah,  chile,"  he  exclaimed, 
shaking  the  fork  at  Tony.  "  If  you  use  any  mo' 
sich  onrespecful  language  as  Snowball  to  me  agin,  I 
chuck  you  in  de  ribber.  Dar  can't  no  white  trash 
like  you  talk  dat  ar  way  to  me.  Bring  your  lazy 
bones  in  here,  an'  take  dat  knife  an'  peel  dein 
taters." 

Tony  again  thought  of  the  advice  Bradley  had 
given  him  while  they  were  on  their  way  to  the  cloth- 
ing store,  and  what  was  more  he  was  wise  enough  to 
act  upon  it.  He  had  been  told  that  he  must  never 
answer  back,  no  matter  how  savagely  he  might  be 
addressed.  If  he  did  that,  he  would  have  every- 
body in  the  schooner  down  on  him,  and  then  his  life 
would  be  a  hard  one  indeed.  There  were  a  thousand 
ways  in  which  a  sailor  could  bother  a  landsman, 
and  the  only  way  in  which  he  could  escape  being 
made  a  victim  of  their  malice,  was  to  do  cheerfully 
and  willingly  whatever  he  was  told  to  do. 


236  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL  ;    OR. 

"  I  feel  very  cheerful  just  now,  don't  I  ?"  thought 
Tony,  as  he  walked  into  the  galley,  and  began  the 
work  that  had  been  assigned  to  him.  "  What 
would  my  father  say  if  he  could  see  me  at  this 
moment  ?  I  don't  think  it  is  quite  safe  to  fool  with 
that  cook,  for  he  looks  to  me  like  a  man  who  would 
chuck  a  fellow  over  the  side  in  a  minute  if  he  got 
mad  at  him.  Say,  doctor,"  he  added,  suddenly, 
knowing  that  if  he  wanted  to  keep  up  his  spirits  he 
must  not  give  away  to  his  gloomy  thoughts,  "  I  want 
to  tell  you " 

"  I  is  Mr.  Sands,  I  is,"  interrupted  the  cook. 

All  the  rest  of  the  crew  aroused  his  ire  every 
hour  in  the  day  by  calling  him  some  name  he  did 
not  like,  and  he  was  determined  that  the  cabin  boy, 
the  only  person  on  board  over  whom  he  had  any 
authority,  should  treat  him  with  due  respect. 

"  All  right,  Mr.  Sands,"  said  Tony,  who  was 
rather  amused  by  this  assumption  of  dignity.  "  I 
want  to  tell  you  that  I  know  nothing  whatever 
about  a  cabin-boy's  duties,  and  still  less  about  cook- 
ing, and  I  want  you  to  be  easy  on  me  till  I  learn 
how  to  do  my  work." 

"  Well,  den,  peel  dem  taters  thinner'n  dat,"  said 
the  negro,  pointing  at  Tony  with  his  long-handled 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  237 

fork.  "  It's  wastin'  the  schooner's  money  to  cut 
off  so  much  tater  wid  dem  skins." 

The  darkey,  remembering  that  his  new  assistant 
had  addressed  him  by  a  title  that  he  particularly 
despised,  was  inclined  to  be  sulky  at  first,  but  he 
gradually  recovered  his  good-nature  and  began  to 
question  Tony.  The  latter  enjoyed  the  conversa- 
tion, and  exerted  himself  to  do  his  part  of  it. 
While  he  was  talking,  he  was  not  thinking  of  the 
dismal  prospect  before  him. 

Not  being  accustomed  to  work,  Tony  soon  grew 
tired  enough  to  sit  down,  but  he  could  not  find  the 
opportunity.  No  sooner  was  one  thing  done  than 
he  was  ordered  to  take  up  something  else.  Dinner 
being  ready,  the  cook  showed  him  how  to  set  the 
table  in  the  cabin,  and  when  the  officers  were  sum- 
moned, he  had  to  take  his  stand  behind  the  cap- 
tain's chair  in  readiness  to  pass  dishes,  or  execute 
any  other  orders  he  might  receive.  He  took  a  good 
look  at  the  two  mates,  whom  he  now  saw  for  the  first 
time,  and  although  he  did  not  admire  the  appear- 
ance of  one  of  them,  he  was  sure  he  would  have 
liked  the  other  if  he  had  not  been  warned  against 
him.  There  was  nothing  in  the  countenance  of  the 
first  mate  to  indicate  that  he  was  such  a  brute  as 


238  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

he  afterwards  showed  himself  to  be.  He  looked 
more  like  a  gentleman  than  either  of  the  other 
officers. 

When  the  captain  and  his  mates  had  satisfied 
their  appetites,  Tony,  having  been  previously 
instructed,  set  to  work  to  clear  away  the  table  and 
put  the  cabin  in  order.  This  done,  he  went  into 
the  galley,  where  he  was  met  by  the  cook,  who, 
with  his  mouth  too  full  to  speak,  waved  his  hand 
toward  some  viands  he  had  placed  upon  one  of  the 
shelves,  and  nodded  his  head  to  Tony,  as  if  inviting 
him  to  help  himself.  The  boy  looked  at  the  food 
with  rather  a  doubtful  eye.  It  was  a  portion  of 
what  had  been  left  over  from  the  dinner  in  the 
cabin,  and  it  was  not  dished  up  with  the  same  care 
that  the  cook  had  expended  upon  it  when  he  placed 
it  before  the  captain. 

"  Have  I  got  to  be  satisfied  with  other's 
leavings?"  asked  Tony,  putting  his  hands  into  his 
pockets  and  looking  at  the  cook. 

"Why,  chile,  dat's  your  grub!"  exclaimed  the 
darkey. 

"  Of  course  it  is  ;  and  you  may  sec  the  day  when 
you  will  be  glad  to  put  up  with  worse !"  exclaimed 
another  voice. 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  239 

Tony  faced  about  and  saw  the  first  mate  standing 
in  the  door.  He  did  not  look  as  amiable  now  as  ho 
did  while  he  was  eating  his  dinner. 

"  Who  are  you  that  comes  aboard  this  vessel  and 
finds  fault  with  the  way  things  are  done  ?"  demanded 
the  officer,  angrily.  "  You  are  afraid  to  eat  after 
gentlemen,  are  you?  Come  out  of  that  and  turn 
to." 

Tony  had  heard  orders  issued  often  enough  to 
know  that  "turn  to"  meant  "go  to  work."  He 
knew,  also,  that  *it  was  customary,  when  the  work 
was  not  very  pressing,  to  allow  the  crew  ample  time 
to  eat  their  dinner  and  take  a  smoke  after  it.  He 
did  not  want  to  smoke,  but  he  was  hungry,  and  he 
did  want  something  to  eat. 

"  I  haven't  had  my  dinner  yet,"  said  he. 

No  sooner  had  the  words  left  his  lips,  than  he 
recalled  Bradley's  advice,  but  it  was  too  late  to  act 
upon  it.  The  officer  walked  into  the  galley,  and 
seizing  the  boy  by  the  collar,  shook  him  until  he 
was  so  dizzy  that  he  could  scarcely  stand  when  he 
was  released.  Then  he  dragged  him  to  the  door, 
and  giving  him  a  kick  to  hasten  his  movements, 
said  in  savage  tones :  "  Jump  into  that  yawl  at  the 
stern  and  hook  them  falls  on.  Lay  aft,  the  rest  of 


240  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

us,  and  run  that  boat  up,"  he  added,  waving  his 
hand  to  the  crew  who  were  sitting  around  the  wind- 
lass. 

Fortunately  for  Tony  he  understood  this  order. 
He  made  his  way  aft  and  found  the  second  mate  then 
overhauling  the  falls.  The  yawl  floated  close  under 
the  stern,  and  it  was  the  work  of  but  a  few  seconds 
for  Tony  to  drop  down  into  it  and  hook  the  blocks 
fast  to  ring-bolts  in  the  bow  and  stern.  By  this 
time  the  crew  arrived,  and  the  boat  with  Tony  in  it, 
was  hauled  up  to  the  davits  and  made  fast  there. 

"I  believe  I  have  made  a  mistake,"  thought 
Tony,  as  he  climbed  back  to  the  schooner's  deck, 
after  pulling  the  plug  out  of  the  yawl,  so  that  the 
water  that  had  leaked  into  her  could  run  out. 
"  This  thing  of  working  under  the  eye  of  a  darkey, 
and  waiting  at  table,  and  saying  '  sir '  to  men  I 
wouldn't  have  looked  at  a  few  days  ago,  isn't  what 
it  is  cracked  up  to  be.  It  isn't  what  I  want  to  go 
to  sea  for,  either.  If  the  mate  is  going  to  make  a 
practice  of  shaking  me  up  in  that  way,  I  shan't 
have  brains  enough  left  to  learn  the  ropes.  I 
wonder  if  I  can  eat  my  dinner  now." 

He  found  out  when  he  reached  the  galley.  As 
he  was  about  to  enter  the  door,  the  cook  held  up  his 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT   HOUSE.  241 

hand  warning! y ;  but  before  Tony  could  ask  him 
what  he  meant,  the  first  mate  appeared  and  seized 
him  by  the  collar. 

"Didn't  I  tell  you  to  turn  to?"  he  demanded, 
tightening  his  grasp  until  the  boy's  neck-tie  began 
to  choke  him. 

"Yes,  sir;  but  I  thought  I  had  got  through,'' 
gasped  Tony. 

"  Well,  you  haven't  got  through,  and  you  won't 
as  long  as  you  stay  aboard  this  vessel.  We  want  to 
get  to  sea  some  time  this  month,  and  you  are  to 
help  to  clear  up  the  decks.  Go  for'ard,  now,  and 
the  second  mate  will  tell  you  what  to  do." 

Tony  found  that  there  was  a  great  deal  to  be 
done,  but  his  services  did  not  amount  to  much.  He 
made  an  effort  to  do  something,  knowing  what  the 
consequences  would  be  if  he  shirked  his-  duty,  and 
he  exerted  himself  to  such  good  purpose  that  he 
succeeded  in  blistering  both  his  hands,  and  calling 
down  upon  his  devoted  head  the  hearty  maledictions 
of  the  men  he  was  trying  so  hard  to  assist. 
Finally,  the  second  mate  got  out  of  all  patience 
with  him. 

"  Go  and  help  the  doctor  wash  dishes,"  said  he, 
pushing  the  boy  toward  the  galley.  "  You  are  only 
16 


242  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

in  the  way  here,  and  we  can  get  along  better  with- 
out you." 

It  was  hard  for  Tony  to  respond  with  a  cheerful 
"  ay,  ay,  sir !"  when  he  was  spoken  to  as  if  he  were 
an  unruly  dog,  but  he  managed  to  do  it,  adding 
that  he  hoped  he  would  some  day  know  his  duty 
better. 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  243 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

TONY  MAKES   ANOTHER   BREAK. 

/^1  0  way  !  Go  way  from  dar,  boy  !"  exclaimed  the 
cook,  when  Tony  presented  himself  before  that 
important  personage.  "  Didn't  de  fus'  mate  done 
tol'  you  to  turn  to?" 

"  He  did,"  replied  the  boy,  "but  the  other  one 
ordered  me  to  come  here  and  help  you." 

"  Den  dat's  all  right.  Dar's  the  dinner  I  done 
save  for  you ;  but  you'd  bes'  eat  wid  one  hand,  an' 
do  something  else  wid  de  other,  kase  if  de  fus'  mate 
look  in  hyar  an'  see  dat  you  ain't  doin'  nuffin'  but 
eat,  he'll  find  work  for  you,  suah.  Dat's  de  kind 
of  a  man  he  is  !' 

Acting  upon  this  advice,  Tony  ate  his  dinner  by 
snatches,  and  for  a  short  half  hour  he  was  allowed 
a  little  peace ;  but  at  the  end  of  that  time,  the  cargo 
was  all  aboard,  the  hatchways  "were  closed,  and  a 


244  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL  :    OR 


tug  came  alongside  to  tow  the  schooner  to  the  Gulf. 
As  she  was  to  pick  up  two  or  three  other  small 
vessels  on  the  way,  the  services  of  all  hands,  as 
well  as  those  of  the  cook  and  his  clumsy  subordi- 
nates, were  called  into  requisition  in  making  up  the 
tow. 

No  doubt  there  were  many  interesting  sights  to 
be  seen  along  the  river  below  New  Orleans,  but  if 
there  were,  Tony  never  knew  it.  lie  was  kept  busy 
every  moment,  and  between  handling  wet  line's  and 
hauling  at  the  halliards  and  sheets,  his  blistered 
palms  fared  badly  indeed.  He  ate  his  supper  as  he 
had  eaten  his  dinner,  holding  his  food  with  one  hand 
and  working  with  the  other;  and  at  ten  o'clock 
tumbled  into  his  hard  bed,  aching  in  every  joint, 
and  almost  ready  to  cry  with  weariness  and  disap- 
pointment. 

"I  know  I  have  made  a  mistake,"  thought  the 
runaway,  who  had  borne  up  remarkably  well  con- 
sidering all  the  circumstances.  Almost  all  the  boys 
who  leave  home  as  he  did,  shed  bitter  tears  of 
repentance  before  the  first  night  has  passed  over 
their  heads.  "Bradley  was  right  when  he  said, 
that  I  am  not  the  sort  of  stuff  that  sailors  are  made 
off,  for  I  can't  stan'd  it,  to  work  all  the  time  as  hard 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  245 

as  I  can  put  in.  I've  made  one  break,  and  if  I  get 
the  chance  I'll  make  another ;  but  this  one  will  be 
toward  home." 

Tony  was  very  homesick  now ;  and  he  awoke  the 
next  morning  from  a  fitful  slumber  into  which  he 
had  fallen,  to  find  that  he  had  been  attacked  by 
another  malady,  that  was  almost  as  bad — sea-sick- 
ness. He  got  up  when  all  hands  were  called,  but 
the  officer  on  watch,  seeing  his  condition,  did  not 
order  him  to  turn  to.  They  were  now  well  out  in 
the  Gulf,  and  the  shores  of  Louisiana  were  lying  low 
in  the  horizon.  The  waves  raised  by  the  brisk  wind 
that  was  blowing,  tossed  the  little  schooner  about  in 
a  way,  that  made  it  impossible  for  Tony  to  keep  his 
feet  without  holding  fast  to  something ;  and  now 
and  then  a  billow,  higher  than  the  rest,  would  dash 
against  her  bows,  and  send  the  water  in  a  shower 
all  over  the  deck.  This  was  the  life  for  which  Tony 
had  so  often  longed ;  but  now  that  he  was  having  a 
little  experience  of  it,  he  did  not  like  it.  The 
bounding  and  plunging  of  the  schooner,  were  very 
different  from  the  smooth,  gliding  motion  of  a  river 
steamer,  and  Tony  was  frightened. 

He  never  forgot  the  horrors  of  that  day.  His  sea 
sickness  grew  worse  every  moment,  and  finally  pros- 


246  GEORGE   AT    THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

trated  Tony,  who  took. to  his  bunk  and  stayed  there, 
expecting  every  moment  to  be  his  last.  When  he 
found  himself,  as  he  supposed,  standing  face  to  face 
with  death,  his  courage  gave  away  altogether,  and 
his  hard  pillow  was  wet  with  the  tears  that  could  no 
longer  be  restrained.  He  thought  of  the  innumer- 
able pleasures  that  had  been  his  while  he  was  at 
home,  of  the  indulgences  that  had  been  so  freely 
granted  to  him,  and  he  wondered  why  in  the  world 
he  had  never  appreciated  them  before.  The  little 
trials  and  troubles  that  fell  to  his  lot,  appeared  very 
insignificant  now. 

"I  was  a  fool,"  said  Tony,  bitterly.  "  and  if  I 
ever  live  to  get  off  this  vessel,  I'll  go  as  straight 
home  as  I  can  go.  Thank  goodness,  I  have  money 
enough  to  pay  my  fare  from  Havana  to  New 
Orleans." 

As  Tony  said  this,  he  raised  himself  to  a  sitting 
posture  in  his  bunk;  took  up  the  clothes-bag  that 
served  him  for  a  pillow,  and  began  throwing  out  its 
contents.  He  was  so  ill,  that  he  did  not  notice  that 
the  articles  were  not  so  neatly  packed  away  as  they 
ought  to  have  been.  He  had  placed  the  suit  he 
wore,  when  he  first  came  aboard  the  schooner,  in 
the  top  of  the  bag,  so  that  it  would  not  be  wrinkled 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  247 

by  the  other  clothes  pressing  upon  it ;  but  he  found 
it  at  the  bottom.  The  vest  was  the  last  article  he 
brought  to  light,  and  to  his  great  surprise  and  alarm, 
he  found  that  all  the  pockets  had  been  turned  inside 
out.  Then  it  flashed  upon  him,  that  the  money  he 
had  been  talking  about  had  disappeared.  Somebody 
had  robbed  him.  He  held  the  vest  away  from  him 
with  both  hands,  gazed  at  it  a  moment,  and  then 
dropped  back  upon  his  back. 

Whether  he  went  to  sleep  or  became  unconscious, 
Tony  afterward  said  he  didn't  know ;  but  he  could 
not  remember  anything  that  happened  during  the 
next  few  hours.  When  he  came  to  himself  it  was 
dark,  and  the  forecastle  was  dimly  lighted  by  a 
smoky  lantern  which  hung  from  one  of  the  beams 
overhead.  His  sea-sickness  was  all  gone,  and  he 
was  very  hungry.  He  was  pretty  strong  too,  he 
found,  when  he  came  to  sit  up  in  his  bunk,  and  he 
was  able  to  think  clearly  and  to  remember  the 
resolution  he  had  made  that  morning. 

"  I  am  not  going  too  stay  among  such  a  heartless 
lot  as  these  sailors  are,"  thought  the  runaway,  as  he 
picked  up  the  various  articles  of  clothing  that  were 
scattered  about  over  the  blankets,  and  put  them 
back  into  his  bag.  "  I  have  been  as  sick  as  a  fellow 


248  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

could  be  all  day,  and  not  a  soul  has  been  near  mo 
to  see  whether  I  was  getting  better  or  worse.  I 
don't  believe  there  is  one  among  them  who  would 
care  a  cent  if  I  had  died.  That's  not  like  the  folks 
at  home ;  and  right  there  is  where  I  am  going,  with 
as  little  delay  as  possible." 

Having  put  all  his  clothes  back  into  his  bag, 
Tony  threw  off  the  blankets  and  arose  to  his  feet. 
Then,  he  found,  that  he  was  not  as  strong  as  he 
thought  he  was ;  but  still  he  managed  to  make  his 
way  to  the  deck.  The  crew,  who  were  gathered 
about  the  windlass  singing  songs  and  telling  stories 
(it  was  the  second  dog-watch,  as  the  hours  from  six 
to  eight  in  the  evening  are  called,  and  they  are 
the  only  hours  of  recreation  known  on  shipboard), 
paid  no  attention  to  him  as  he  staggered  toward 
the  galley ;  but  Mr.  Sands  greeted  him  very 
cordially. 

"  I  kinder  reckoned  you'd  come  around  purty 
soon,  an'  so  I  kep'  something  hot  for  you,"  said  he. 
"  Come  in  an'  take  a  bite.  You  don't  look  so  peart 
as  you  did  yesterday,  when  you  come  to  de  winder 
an'  called  me  Snowball." 

"I  don't  feel  so  smart,  either,"  replied  Tony,  in 
a  faint  voice.  "  I  am  obliged  to  you  for  thinking 


LIFE    IN   TIIE    PILOT   HOUSE.  249 

of  me  when  everybody  else  seems  to  have  forgotten 
me,  and  I  will  try  to  drink  a  cup  of  tea  as  soon  as 
I  come  back.  I  am  going  to  see  the  captain." 

"  What  you  want  to  see  de  capin'  for  ?"  demanded 
the  cook.  "  Better  keep  away  from  him  ?  I  tell 
you.  He  don't  like  for  to  be  pestered." 

"I  am  not  going  to  pester  him.  I  want  to  tell 
him  that  I  have  been  robbed.  I  left  fifteen  dollars 
in  the  pocket  of  my  vest  when  I  put  it  into  my 
clothes-bag,  and  somebody  has  gone  through  it  and 
stolen  the  money." 

The  cook  did  not  seem  to  be  at  all  surprised  by 
this  piece  of  news.  He  did  not  even  look  up  from 
his  work. 

"  Well,  den,"  said  he,  "  what  made  you  luff  your 
money  down  dar  in  de  fo'castle.  Dat  ain't  no  way. 
'Course  it  would  be  stole  if  you  don't  take  care 
on  it." 

"  It's  gone,  and  I  want  the  captain  to  get  it  back 
for  me,"  said  Tony. 

"  How  can  he  get  it  back  for  you  ?  Can  you 
pick  out  de  man  who  stole  it  ?" 

"No,  I  couldn't  do  that;  but  if  the  captain 
should  find  those  bills  in  some  man's  pocket, 


250  GEORGE    AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

wouldn't   he   know   that  he  was  the  guilty  one  ?" 
asked  Tony. 

"  Could  you  sw'ar  to  dem  bills,  if  you  should  see 
em?" 

"  Of  course  not,"  replied  Tony,  who  began  to  see 
what  the  cook  was  trying  to  get  at. 

"Den  how  de  ole  man  goin'  to  get  your  money 
back  ?  How  you  know  dat  one  of  de  crew  took  it  ? 
Mos'  likely  somebody  slip  down  into  the  fo'castle 
an'  stole  it  afore  we  luff  New  Orleans.  You  bes' 
drink  your  tea  an'  make  no  furse.  You  get  nuffin 
but  jaw  from  de  ole  man  ;  I  tell  you  dat.  Nex' 
time  look  out." 

Here  was  another  disappointment  for  Tony.  He 
supposed  that  the  captain  would  interest  himself  in 
his  case  at  once,  and  that  it  would  be  no  trouble  at 
all  for  him  to  discover  the  thief  and  restore  the  lost 
money ;  but  now  he  saw  that  there  were  difficulties 
in  the  way.  Suppose  the  captain  was  willing  to  be 
"  pestered"  for  once,  that  he  searched  the  crew,  and 
found  upon  the  person  of  each  of  them  just  fifteen 
dollars  in  bills  ?  How  was  Tony  going  to  prove  his 
property  ?  He  could  not  even  prove  that  he  had 
fifteen  dollars  when  he  came  aboard  the  schctoner, 
for  Bradley,  who  was  the  only  one  who  was 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  251 

acquainted  with  the  fact,  was  miles  away  at  that 
moment. 

"  It's  gone,  and  that's  all  there  is  about  it,"  said 
Tony,  to  himself,  as  he  leaned  against  the  bulkhead, 
and  nibbled  a  piece  of  dry  toast  and  drank  a  decoc- 
tion of  herbs  called  tea,  which  the  cook  poured  out 
for  him.  "  It's  gone,  and  I  am  penniless  as  well  as 
friendless.  There  is  only  one  thing  I  can  do  now, 
and  if  I  live,  I  am  going  to  do  it." 

The  tea  and  toast  tasted  better  than  Tony  thought 
they  would ;  the  fresh  gulf  breeze  blew  away  the 
slight  headache  he  had  brought  out  of  the  forecastle 
with  him,  and  gave  him  a  little  strength,  and  the 
boy  finally  mustered  up  ambition  enough  to  assist 
the  cook  in  his  work  about  the  galley.  While  he 
was  thus  engaged,  the  second  mate  came  by,  and 
seeing  that  Tony  had  got  upon  his  feet  again,  he 
stopped  at  the  door  long  enough  to  tell  him  that  he 
belonged  to  his  (the  second  mate's)  watch,  which 
would  go  on  duty  at  eight  o'clock  and  remain  on 
until  midnight.  The  crew  of  the  Princeton  was  so 
small  that  the  men  were  obliged  to  stand  watch  and 
watch,  all  hands  being  on  duty  during  the  day- 
time. 

Tony  awoke  the  next  morning  to  pass  through 


252  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

the  hardest  day  he  had  yet  experienced  on  ship- 
board. His  troubles  began  at  once,  for  everybody, 
including  Mr.  Sands,  seemed  to  have  got  up  cross. 
While  he  was  engaged  in  washing  down  the  deck, 
he  was  thoroughly  drenched  by  a  bucket  of  water 
which  was  thrown  into  his  face  by  the  first-mate, 
who  would  not  allow  him  to  go  below  to  change  his 
clothing,  but  ordered  him  into  the  galley  as  soon  as 
the  scrubbing  was  done. 

"Get  out  o'  hyar,  boy!"  exclaimed  the  cook, 
when  his  assistant  presented  himself  before  him  with 
dripping  garments.  "  I  done  wash  dis  galley  dis 
mornin',  an'  now  you  muss  it  all  up  again." 

"What  am  I  to  do?"  asked  Tony,  in  somo 
alarm.  "  The  mate  won't  let  me  change  my  clothes 
and  you  don't  want  me  here." 

"  Well,  den,  go  into  de  cabin  an'  set  de  table 
afore  de  ole  man  gets  up,"  commanded  Mr.  Sands. 

Tony  stopped  long  enough  to  wring  some  of  the 
water  out  of  the  legs  of  his  trowsers  (that  brought 
him  a  blessing  from  the  second-mate,  who  told  him 
in  rather  sharp  language,  that  that  part  of  the  deck 
had  been  swabbed  up  once),  and  after  drying  his 
hands  on  one  of  the  cook's  towels,  he  hurried  into 
the  cabin.  When  he  was  putting  up  the  leaves  of 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  253 

the  table,  he  heard  the  captain  moving  about  in  his 
stateroom  and  he  made  all  the  haste  he  could,  hop- 
ing to  complete  his  work  before  that  officer  came 
out ;  for  he  noticed  with  no  little  uneasiness,  that 
he  was  leaving  a  trail  behind  him  wherever  he  went. 
It  could  be  plainly  seen,  too,  dingy  as  the  carpet 
was;  and  it  was  the  first  thing  that  caught  the 
captain's  eye  when  he  opened  the  door  of  his  state- 
room, which  he  did,  before  Tony  had  fairly  begun 
setting  the  table. 

"What's  that?"  roared  the  captain,  looking  first 
at  the  carpet  and  then  at  Tony. 

"  The  mate  threw  a  bucket  of  water  over  me,  sir," 
replied  the  boy. 

"  Suppose  he  did  !  Haven't  you  sense  enough  to 
go  and  get  on  a  dry  suit?"  demanded  the  captain. 

"  I  wanted  too,  sir,  but  he  wouldn't  let  me." 

"  Well,  I  tell  you  to  go  and  do  it  now." 

The  captain  took  a  step  forward,  and  Tony,  who 
had  already  learned  to  expect  a  kick  every  time 
he  received  a  reprimand,  sprang  quickly  up  the 
ladder 

"Now,  I'll  see  what  that  mate  will  do  about  it," 
said  he,  as  he  made  his  way  toward  the  forecastle : 
and  sure  enough  he  did.  He  had  scarcely  taken 


254  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

down  his  bag  of  clothes,  when  he  heard  footsteps, 
and  looking  up  saw  the  mate  coming  down  the  lad- 
der. He  walked  straight  up  to  Tony,  and  without 
srying  a  word,  knocked  him  flat  with  a  blow  of  his 
fist. 

"^  Are  you  going  to  obey  orders  or  not?"  said  he, 
looking  down  at  the  prostrate  boy,  who  was  so  badly 
stunned,  that  he  could  not  get  upon  his  feet.  "  I 
didn't  tell  you  to  come  in  here.  I  told  you  to 
go  into  the  galley.  Now  start  or  I'll  give  you 
another." 

Tony  hear  the  words,  but  they  put  no  life  into 
him.  They  seemed  to  come  from  some  far  away 
source,  and  to  have  no  reference  whatever  to  him- 
self. He  did  not  even  know  that  they  were 
addressed  to  him,  nor  did  he  fully  comprehend  the 
mate's  threat  to  give  him  another.  He  knew  when 
the  officer  picked  him  up  and  shook  him ;  but  when 
he  was  released,  he  sunk  down  beside  his  bunk 
again.  He  heard  the  mate  say,  that  he  thought  he 
had  received  a  lesson  that  he  would  not  soon  forget ; 
and  saw  him  when  he  ascended  to  the  deck,  but  still 
he  did  not  move.  He  must  have  laid  there  for  half 
an  hour  or  more,  seeing  everything  in  the  forecastle 
and  hearing  all  that  went  on  on  deck,  but  fully 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  255 

sensible  of  nothing ;  and  during  that  time,  no  one 
came  near  him.  At  last  his  scattered  faculties 
began  to  come  back  to  him  very  gradually,  accom- 
panied by  a  splitting  headache.  After  two  or  three 
ineffectual  attempts,  he  succeeded  in  rolling  into  his 
bunk ;  and  for  the  first  time  since  he  could  remem- 
ber, cried  himself  into  a  dreamless  slumber. 

His  tears  or  the  refreshing  sleep  he  enjoyed  put 
his  head  all  right  again,  but  he  found,  upon  examin- 
ation, that  his  face  was  pretty  badly  battered.  His 
eyes  had  a  long  way  to  look  to  see  beyond  the 
swelling  that  surrounded  them,  and  when  he  made 
his  way  to  the  deck,  the  crew  looked  at  him  in  the 
greatest  surprise.  So  did  Mr.  Sands,  who,  without 
saying  a  word,  led  him  into  the  galley  and  placed 
him  in  front  of  a  little  piece  of  looking-glass  that 
was  nailed  to  the  bulkhead.  Both  his  eyes  were  as 
black  as  his  hat. 

"  Does  you  feel  sick  ?"  asked  the  cook,  in  a  tone 
of  sympathy. 

"  Yes,  I  do — sick  at  heart,"  added  Tony,  to  him- 
self. "  Things  never  go  right  with  me  as  they  do 
with  other  fellows,  and  I  might  just  as  well  fold  my 
hands  and  let  them  go  as  they  please  without  making 
any  effort  to  better  myself.  There's  one  thing 


256  GEOKGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

about  it:  I'll  burn  up  those  lying  books  as  soon  as 
I  get  home,  and  never  think  of  a  sailor  or  salt 
water  again." 

"  I  k  no  wed  you  didn't  do  right  to  go  an'  raise  a 
furse  wid  dat  fus'  mate,"  continued  the  cook. 
"  He'-s  a  bad  one." 

Tony  replied  that  he  didn't  raise  any  fuss  with 
him,  and  then  went  on  to  tell  why  the  mate  had 
knocked  him  down.  When  he  had  finished  his 
story,  the  darkey  shook  his  head  as  if  to  say  that  it 
was  a  hard  case  altogether ;  and  then  he  whispered 
to  Tony— 

"  He  never  luff  up  on  you  now  so  long  as  you 
stay  aboard  dis  schooner.  He  get  wusser  every  day, 
an'  de  fus'  thing  you  know  you  find  yourself  over- 
board. Boy,  you'd  bes'  cl'ar  yourself." 

"  That's  just  what  I  am  determined  to  do," 
answered  Tony,  in  the  same  cautious  whisper. 
"  How  far  are  we  from  Havana?" 

"  We  oughter  to  be  dar  to-morrer,"  replied  Mr. 
Sands.  "  Now,  I'll  tell  you  what's  a  fac' :  I  allers 
have  to  go  ashore  arter  de  grub,  an'  I'll  take  you 
along  to  help  me  tote  it.  If  you  shouldn't  come 
back  wid  me,  I  wouldn't  blame  you." 

As  the  cook  said  this,  he  winked  at  his  assistant, 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  257 

who  tried  to  respond  in  the  same  way ;  but  he  didn't 
succeed  very  well. 

Tony's  face  would  have  excited  the  sympathy  of 
anybody  but  a  brutal  mate.  The  one  who  had  given 
him  the  blow,  called  upon  him  just  as  often,  and 
expected  just  as  much  of  him,  as  he  would  if  the 
boy  had  been  in  good  working  condition.  His 
creed  was,  that  so  long  as  a  foremast  hand  was  able 
to  stand  upon  his  feet,  he  was  able  to  do  duty;  and 
more  than  that,  he  must  attend  to  it  or  take  the 
consequences.  Tony  succeeded  in  escaping  further 
punishment,  arid  it  was  well  for  him  that  he  did 
so,  for  another  blow  like  that  might  have  settled  the 
business  for  him  for  ever. 

The  next  morning  at  eight  o'clock,  the  Princeton 
was  made  fast  to  a  jetty  in  the  harbor  of  Havana, 
where  she  was  to  remain  two  or  three  days,  or  until 
she  had  discharged  a  portion  of  her  cargo  and  taken 
on  some  more  which  she  had  been  chartered  to  carry 
to  Rio. 

As  soon  as  she  was  fairly  in  her  berth  and 
everything  had  been  made  snug,  the  doctor  and  his 
assistant  made  ready  to  go  ashore — or  rather  the 
doctor  did,  for  when  Tony  was  about  to  descend  into 

the  forecastle  to  change  his  clothing,  the  first  mate, 
17 


258  GEORGE   AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

who  was  always  around  when  he  was  not  wanted, 
ordered  him  back. 

"I  want  to  put  on  my  shore  rig,"  said  Tony. 
"  The  captain  told  me  to  go  ashore  >vith  the 
doctor. 

"  All  right,"  was  the  reply.  "Go  as  you 
are." 

"  Ay,  ay,  sir  !  I  wonder  if  he  knows  what  I  am 
going  to  do,  and  if  he  thinks  the  want  of  good 
clothes  will  keep  me  from  deserting  this  miserable 
craft?"  thought  the  boy.  "If  he  does,  he  doesn't 
know  Tony  Richardson.  I  will  go  with  the  first 
vessel  that  leaves  this  port  for  New  Orleans,  if  I 
have  to  hang  on  to  the  rudder." 

Tony  did  not  look  much  like  the  dashing  young 
fellow  who  had  clambered  over  the  Princeton's  rail 
a  few  days  before.  His  face,  to  quote  from  the 
doctor,  was  getting  no  better  very  fast ;  the  cheap 
stuff  of  which  his  clothes  was  made,  already  began 
to  show  large  spots  of  dirt  and  numerous  signs  of 
wear ;  his  hands  looked  as  though  they  had  never 
been  washed ;  and  his  hair  wouldn't  stay  anywhere. 
No  shipmaster  would  care  to  employ  such  a  miserable 
looking  object  as  he  was  to  wait  upon  him  at  the 
table. 


LIFE   IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  259 

"  Getting  to  New  Orleans  is  the  hardest  part  of 
the  undertaking,"  said  Tony,  when  he  and  tho 
doctor  were  safe  ashore.  "  If  I  can  only  reach  that 
city,  I  shall  be  all  right.  Good-by,  you  miserable 
old  tub,"  he  added,  shaking  his  fist  at  the  schooner. 
"  I  only  wish  I  were  a  man  so  that  I  could  take 
satisfaction  out  of  that  mate.  Now,  doctor,  I  am 
going  to  leave  you.  .  Good-by  !" 

"  Dat  won't  do,"  said  the  darkey,  hastily.  "  We 
mustn't  be  friendly  enough  to  shake  hands,  kase  if 
anybody  should  see  us,  dat  would  fotch  Mr.  Sands 
into  trouble." 

"  Then  you  take  the  baskets,"  said  Tony,  who 
had  one  on  each  arm,  which  the  captain  expected 
him  to  bring  back  filled  with  fresh  vegetables. 

"  No,  sir.  I'll  turn  my  back,  an'  you  jes'  luff 
'em  down  an'  cl'ar  yourself.  Dat's  de  bes'  way. 
Say,  boy,"  added  the  darkey,  directing  Tony's 
attention  to  a  large  steamer  that  lay  at  a  pier  a 
short  distance  further  up  the  bay.  "  You  see  dat 
boat  ?  Dat's  de  City  of  Baltimore.  She  runs 
between  dat  port  an'  New  Orleans  every  three 
weeks.  We's  been  in  New  Orleans  nigh  onto  four 
weeks,  an'  she's  never  been  dar,  so  she  mus'  be 
goin'  dar  now." 


260  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

"  I  wonder  if  I  could  get  a  berth  on  her  ?" 
exclaimed  Tony. 

"  Dunno  nuffin'  'bout  dat;  but  I'll  tell  you  dis  for 
a  fac' :  Don't  you  luff  dat  boat  go  to  New  Orleans 
widout  you.  You  hears  me,  I  reckon.  Hello ! 
what's  dat?" 

Mr.  Sands  suddenly  became  very  deeply  inter- 
ested in  something  that  he  thought  he  saw  going 
on  over  toward  Moro  Castle,  and  Tony  taking  the 
hint,  deposited  his  baskets  on  the  ground  behind 
him  and  hurried  away.  He  quickly  placed  a  build- 
ing between  himself  and  the  cook,  and  looking 
around  the  corner  of  it  saw  that  the  latter  had 
not  yet  changed  his  position.  When  he  thought  he 
had  given  the  boy  plenty  of  time  to  get  out  of  sight, 
he  faced  about,  looked  all  around  him,  and  shaking 
his  head  as  if  he  were  completely  mystified,  picked 
up  the  baskets  that  Tony  had  dropped,  and  walked 
rapidly  down  the  street. 

"He's  a  good-hearted  fellow,"  said  Tony,  who 
felt  some  regret  at  parting  with  his  sable  friend, 
"  and  he  was  the  only  one  who  showed  me  any  kind- 
ness while  I  was  on  board  the  schooner.  I  hope  he 
won't  get  into  trouble  by  going  back  without  me. 
Now,  if  I  only  had  my  money  in  my  pocket,  it 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  261 

would  be  very  easy  for  me  to  reach  home  ;  and  if  I 
ever  get  there  again  I'll  stay.  Home  is  the  best 
place,  after  all,  and  it  is  a  great  pity  I  couldn't  seo 
it  when  I  was  there.  The  old  saying :  '  Experience 
is  a  hard  school,  and  none  but  fools  learn  therein/ 
applies  to  me  very  strongly.  It  takes  the  hard 
knocks  to  put  sense  into  the  heads  of  some  fel- 
lows— "  here  he  raised  his  hand  to  his  face — "  and 
if  I  haven't  got  a  little  now,  I  never  shall  have 
any." 

As  Tony  drew  nearer  to  the  steamer,  he  saw 
that  there  was  a  goodly  number  of  gaily-dressed 
passengers  on  her  deck  watching  what  was  passing 
on  the  wharf.  He  had  seen  the  time  when  he  had 
mingled  freely  with  just  such  a  company  on  board 
his  father's  steamers ;  but  if  he  should  venture 
among  these  people  in  his  present  plight,  how  long 
would  it  be,  he  asked  himself,  before  somebody 
would  take  him  by  the  collar  and  assist  him  back 
to  the  pier?  His  place  now  was  on  deck  and 
among  the  men,  and  there  he  was  perfectly  willing 
to  go. 

"Want  to  ship  a  hand,  sir?"  asked  Tony,  step- 
ping up  to  a  man  who  was  dressed  in  a  suit  of  navy 
olue,  and  wore  a  gold  band  around  his  cap. 


262  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  Guess  not,"  replied  the  officer,  taking  one 
glance  at  Tony  and  then  turning  away. 

"I'll  not  ask  for  any  wages,  sir,"  pleaded  Tony. 
"I  only  want  to  work  my  passage  to  New  Orleans." 

"  Don't  want  you,"  was  the  curt  reply.  "  The 
crew  is  full." 

This  was  very  discouraging,  but  still  Tony's  case 
was  not  hopeless.  The  doctor's  parting  advice, 
"Don't  you  let  that  boat  go  to  New  Orleans  without 
you,"  kept  ringing  in  his  ears,  and  to  prevent  it 
Tony  was  willing  to  do  something  desperate.  He 
walked  along  the  wharf  until  he  came  abreast  of  the 
stern  of  the  vessel,  and  there  he  took  his  stand,  and  set 
himself  to  watch  the  officer  to  whom  he  had  spoken. 
He  moved  away  presently,  and  then  Tony  ran  up  the 
plank  that  led  into  the  after  gangway.  There  was 
no  one  in  sight,  but  the  hatchway  was  open,  and  as 
quick  as  thought  Tony  seized  the  combings,  and 
swung  himself  into  it.  He  crawled  along  over  the 
boxes  and  bales,  of  which  the  steamer's  freight  was 
composed,  and  settling  himself  into  a  comfortable 
position  by  the  side  of  a  water-butt,  drew  a  long 
breath  of  relief,  and  waited  to  see  what  was  going 
to  happen. 


LIFE  IN  THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  263 


HAPTFR  XV. 

AN   OLD   ACQUAINTANCE. 

THE  way  affairs  are  ordered  in  this  world  bangs 
me  completely.     The  things  we  long  for  and 
dream  about,  and  which  we  think   are  absolutely 
necessary   for   our   happiness,    we    can't   get;  and 
those  we  don't  care  a  cent  for,  are  crowded  on  us." 

It  was  George  Ackernian  who  said  this.  He 
took  possession  of  one  of  the  chairs  on  the  guard 
and  waved  his  hand  to  Tony  Richardson  who  was 
just  entering  the  pilot-house  of  the  steamer  that 
was  to  carry  him  back  to  St.  Louis. 

"Now  there's  Gus  Robbins,"  continued  George, 
as  he  pushed  his  hat  on  the  back  of  his  head  and 
elevated  his  feet  to  the  top  of  the  rail.  "  From 
the  little  I  heard  of  his  history  I  gained  the  idea 
that  he  ran  away  from  Foxboro'  because  he  had  to 
work  in  his  father's  store.  He  didn't  like  the 


204  GEORGE    AT   THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

business,  and  rather  than  follow  it  he  was  willing 
to  trust  himself  to  the  tender  mercies  of  Ned 
Ackerman,  who  went  squarely  back  on  him  the 
very  first  chance  he  got.  If  Gus  had  had  any 
sense  at  all,  he  ought  to  have  known  that  he 
couldn't  spend  his  whole  life  in  visiting  with  Ned, 
that  he  would  have  to  go  to  work  again  some  time 
or  another,  and  that  there  was  nothing  on  the 
plains  that  a  dry-goods  clerk  could  do.  I  wonder 
where  he  went  ?  If  he  could  have  heard  the  way 
in  which  Ned  talked  about  him  while  we  were  on 
the  way  from  Brownsville  to  Galveston,  he  would 
never  have  anything  more  to  do  with  him." 

We  may  anticipate  events  a  little  by  saying  that 
Gus  never  did  have  anything  more  to  do  with  Ned, 
but  he  had  a  good  deal  to  do  with  George — 
more,  in  fact,  than  he  wanted  to  do.  But  George 
proved  himself  a  faithful  friend,  and  saved  Gus 
from  passing  some  of  the  best  years  of  his  life  ir 
prison. 

The  young  pilot  spent  a  few  minutes  more  in 
thinking  about  Gus,  wondering  where  he  went  when 
he  left  Ned  so  suddenly  in  Brownsville,  and  then 
his  thoughts  came  back  to  Tony.  It  was  the  con- 
versation he  had  had  with  the  latter  a  short 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  265 

time   before  that  set  George  to  meditating  in  this 
way. 

"  And  now  here's  another  discontented  boy," 
said  he,  to  himself.  "  I  know  he  has  everything  on 
earth  that  any  reasonable  fellow  could  ask  for,  with 
one  single  exception — his  own  way  ;  and  if  he  could 
get  it,  it  would  be  the  worst  thing  that  ever  hap- 
pened to  him.  He  wants  just  what  I've  got  and 
don't  care  for — liberty  to  do  as  he  pleases  ;  and  I 
want  just  what  he's  got,  but  which  I  never  shall 
have — a  kind  father  and  mother.  That's  what 
makes  me  say  that  the  things  we  want  the  most  we 
can't  get.  If  I  could  trade  places  with  Tony,  how 
long  would  it  be  before  he  would  want  to  trade  back 
again  ?" 

While  George  was  communing  thus  with  him- 
self, a  sprucely-dressed,  but  rather  dissipated-looking 
young  man,  mounted  the  steps  that  led  to  the  boiler- 
deck,  and  stopped  short  when  he  discovered  the  cub- 
pilot  sitting  on  the  guard.  He  looked  sharply  at 
him  for  a  moment,  while  an  expression  of  anxiety 
Fettled  on  his  face. 

"  What  evil  genius  sent  that  fellow  here  ?"  said 
he,  to  himself.  "  He  knows  too  much  about  me, 
and  I  don't  believe  it  is  safe  to  have  him  around. 


266  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

Look  here,  partner,"  said  he,  stepping  up  and  lay- 
ing his  hand  upon  George's  shoulder,  "this  boat 
will  not  start  until  Monday  afternoon." 

The  words  and  the  touch  aroused  George  from 
his  reverie,  and  raising  his  eyes  to  the  face  above 
him,  he  was  surprised  to  see  that  it  belonged  to  an 
old  acquaintance — the  same  young  man  who  had 
tried  to  induce  him  to  surrender  Mr.  Black's  pocket- 
book  into  his  hands,  instead  of  giving  it  to  its  law- 
ful owner.  He  had  never  seen  nor  heard  of  him 
since  leaving  the  General  Quitman. 

"I  know  it,"  replied  George,  "but  how  does  it 
come  that  you  know  so  much  ?" 

He  did  not  like  the  arrogant  tone  in  which  the 
young  man  addressed  him,  and  he  took  this  way  to 
show  it. 

"  Being  chief  clerk  of  this  craft,  I  am  supposed 
to  know  something  about  her  and  her  contemplated 
movements,"  was  the  young  man's  reply. 

"0,  you  have  charge  of  the  office,  have  you?" 
said  George.  "  I  wasn't  aware  of  the  fact." 

"  You  are  not  going  down  the  river  with  us,  are 
you?" 

"  Well — yes;  I  have  been  thinking  about  it." 

"Then  you  had  better  go  ashore  and  wait  until 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT   HOUSE.  267 

we  are  ready  to  start.  We  don't  keep  a  hotel,  and 
we  are  not  going  to  board  you  two  whole  days  for 
nothing.  The  truth  is,  I  don't  want  him  hanging 
around  where  he  can  say  something  that  would 
injure  me,"  thought  the  clerk,  as  he  turned  on  his 
heel  and  walked  away.  "He  looked  at  me  pretty 
sharp,  but  I  don't  believe  he  recognised  me.  If  I 
thought  he  did,  I  should  be  in  suspense  during  the 
whole  trip." 

"  He's  a  conceited  little  up-start,"  soliloquised 
George.  He  has  never  had  charge  of  an  office  before, 
and  it  hurts  him.  It'll  not  take  me  long  to  give  him 
to  understand  that  he  has  nothing  to  do  with  me." 

George  was  at  first  inclined  to  be  angry  with  the 
clerk  for  his  unwarrantable  assumption  of  authority. 
He  had  been  on  the  river  long  enough  to  know 
that  when  a  steamer  is  lying  in  port,  no  objection 
is  ever  made  to  the  company  of  any  orderly  person. 
If  a  visitor  chooses  to  sit  on  the  guards,  and  watch 
the  boats  that  are  running  up  and  down  the  river, 
and  enjoy  the  cool  breeze,  he  is  welcome  to  do  so. 
If  he  wants  to  ride  up  to  the  coal-fleet  on  her,  he  is 
at  liberty  to  do  that  also ;  but  he  is  generally 
warned  that  he  had  better  get  off  unless  he  is 
willing  to  walk  back.  Of  course,  no  passengers  are 


268  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

received  previous  to  the  day  of  sailing,  but  they  are 
free  to  come  aboard  and  look  about  as  much  as  they 
please. 

"  I  have  as  much  right  aboard  this  boat  as  he 
has,"  thought  George,  u  but  of  course,  he  didn't 
know  that.  Taking  me  for  a  passenger,  he  thought 
he  would  show  off  a  little.  No ;  that  can't  be  the 
reason,  either.  He  knows  that  I  am  the  fellow  who 
found  Mr.  Black's  pocket-book,  and  that  was  his 
way  of  showing  that  he  hates  me,  because  I  wouldn't 
give  it  up  to  him.  I  wonder  if  Mr.  Richardson's 
agent  knows  that  he  drinks  and  gambles  ?  Proba- 
bly not ;  for  if  he  did,  he  wouldn't  trust  him  to 
handle  any  of  the  boat's  money.  He  wants  to  go 
easy  on  me,  or  I  shall  let  him  know  that  I  remem- 
ber his  doings  aboard  the  Quitman." 

George  kept  his  place  on  the  guard  until  the 
supper-bell  rang,  and  then  he  went  into  the  barber 
shop.  After  washing  his  hands  and  face,  and  brush- 
ing his  clothes,  he  came  out  and  took  his  seat  at  the 
table.  One  of  the  waiters  pulled  his  chair  out  for 
him,  and,  as  it  happened,  seated  him  next  to  the 
clerk,  who  stared  at  him  as  if  he  was  greatly  amazed 
at  his  impudence. 

"  Tea  or  coffee,  sah  ?"  said  the  waiter. 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  269 

"  Hold  on  there  !"  exclaimed  the  clerk.  "  Have 
you  got  a  ticket,  young  fellow  ?" 

"Tea,"  answered  George;  while  the  waiter 
smiled  at  what  he  regarded  as  a  pleasantry  on  the 
part  of  the  first  clerk.  Only  those  passengers  who 
have  paid  their  fare  are  served  at  table ;  and  to 
show  that  they  are  square  with  the  office,  it  is 
customary  for  them  to  place  their  tickets  beside 
their  plates,  so  that  the  waiters  can  see  them. 

"  Beefsteak  or  mutton  chop,  sah  ?"  continued  the 
darkey. 

George  gave  his  order ;  and  when  the  waiter  had 
gone  off  with  his  plate,  he  thrust  his  hands  into  his 
vest  pockets,  as  if  he  were  searching  for  his  ticket. 

"I  guess  you  haven't  got  one/'  said  the  clerk. 
"  I  know  you  haven't  paid  your  fare  to  me." 

"  I  don't  seem  to  find  anything  that  looks  like  a 
ticket,  that's  a  fact,"  said  George,  "  but  I'll  take 
supper  with  you,  all  the  same.  I  wouldn't  be  too 
hard  on  an  old  acquaintance,  if  I  were  you." 

"You  are  no  acquaintance  of  mine,"  said  the 
clerk,  whose  face  grew  a  shade  paler  than  it  usually 
was. 

"But  I  have  seen  you  before,  anyway,"  persisted 
George.  "  I  met  you  on  the  Quitman,  and  we  had 


270  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

a  talk  about  a  pocket-book  I  found  on  the  roof.  I 
believe  that,  in  a  roundabout  way,  you  rather  gave 
me  credit  for  restoring  it  to  its  owner.  I  didn't 
think  then,  that  you  and  I  would  ever  be  attached 
to  the  same  vessel,  for  I  didn't  know  that  you  were 
a  ri  verm  an." 

"0,  you  belong  here,  do  you?"  exclaimed  the 
clerk. 

"I  do.     My  place  is  in  the  pilot-house." 

"Why  didn't  you  say  so,  without  so  much 
fooling?" 

"  Why  didn't  you  ask  me,  if  you  cared  to  know?" 
said  George,  in  reply.  "You  ordered  me  ashore 
without  taking  the  trouble  to  make  any  inquiries. 
I*  think  that  settles  him,"  added  the  young  pilot, 
mentally.  "  I  have  frightened  him,  judging  by  the 
looks  of  his  face." 

Yes,  the  clerk  was  "  settled,"  but  not  in  the  way 
that  George  supposed.  As  we  know,  this  young  man, 
when  he  came  up  the  river  on  the  General  Quit 
man,  six  months  before,  had  lost  at  the  gambling- 
table  a  thousand  dollars  of  the  money  he  had  col- 
lected for  his  employer.  If  he  could  have  induced 
George  to  give  Mr.  Black's  pocket-book  to  him,  he 
could  have  replaced  that  money,  and  had  something 


LIFE   IN    THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  271 

left  for  himself;  but  he  failed  in  this  and  got  him- 
self into  trouble  the  moment  he  reached  St.  Louis. 
His  employer  promptly  discharged  him  from  the 
lucrative  position  he  held,  and  gave  him  his  choice 
between  refunding  the  sum  he  had  lost  and  standing 
an  action  for  embezzlement.  Of  course,  he  pre- 
ferred to  return  the  money,  but  it  was  only  after 
infinite  trouble  that  he  succeeded  in  raising  it, 
his  father,  to  whom  he  first  applied,  refusing  to  aid 
him  in  any  way.  When  at  last  he  procured  the 
help  he  needed,  it  was  through  representations  as  to 
his  financial  standing  that  would  hardly  have  borne 
investigation  in  a  court  of  law.  He  was  also 
obliged  to  make  promises  that  he  could  not  keep, 
and  to  give  a  note  that  he  could  not  meet  when  it 
became  due.  He  had  agreed  to  return  the  money 
he  had  borrowed  in  three  months,  with  a  heavy 
interest  added.  How  he  was  going  to  fulfil  that 
agreement  was  a  problem  over  which  he  had  often 
racked  his  brain,  and  to  assist  him  in  finding  a  way 
out  of  his  troubles,  and  to  make  his  mind  clearer, 
he  regularly  and  frequently  sought  the  aid  of  some- 
tliing  stimulating  which  the  barkeeper  fixed  up  for 
him.  He  had  at  last  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that 
there  was  no  way  in  which  he  could  extricate  him- 


272  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

self  from  the  difficulties  with  which  he  was  sur- 
rounded, and  he  had  almost  made  up  his  mind  that 
he  would  not  return  with  the  boat  to  St.  Louis — 
that  he  would  abscond  somewhere  along  the  river 
and  leave  his  creditors  to  whistle  for  their  money. 
This  was  the  way  the  clerk  was  situated  on  the 
night  that  he  and  George  Ackerman  sat  at  the 
supper-table  in  the  cabin  of  the  Telegraph ;  and 
we  have  been  thus  particular  in  describing  it  in 
order  that  the  reader  may  readily  understand  what 
happened  afterward. 

"Now,  here's  a  kettle  of  fish,"  soliloquised  the 
clerk,  twisting  uneasily  about  on  his  chair.  "  This 
fellow  knows  me,  and  worse  than  that,  he  is  going 
down  the  river  with  us.  I  wonder  if  he  knows 
old  Richardson  ?  If  he  does,  I  must  either  get  him 
off  the  boat  or  make  a  friend  of  him ;  for  if  he 
should  take  it  into  his  head  to  tell  what  happened 
on  board  the  Quitman,  I  should  lose  this  berth  as 
sure  as  I  am  a  living  man." 

The  clerk  did  not  linger  as  long  at  the  table  as  he 
usually  did,  and  neither  did  he  again  speak  to 
George.  He  seemed  to  be  thinking  busily,  and  the 
expression  on  his  face  indicated  that  the  subject 
upon  which  he  was  meditating  was  not  an  agreeable 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  273 

one.  But  at  length  he  assumed  a  more  cheerful 
look,  and  as  he  arose  from  the  table,  he  said  to 
himself — 

"  I  think  I  had  better  let  him  stay  and  try  to  make 
a  friend  of  him.  If  I  can  only  do  that,  I  can  put 
myself  square  with  the  world  once  more,  and  at  the 
same  time  take  revenge  on  him  for  getting  me  into 
this  scrape.  For  he  is  the  one  that  is  to  blame  for 
it.  Why  didn't  he  hand  over  that  pocket-book 
when  I  offered  him  a  reward  for  it  ?  My  first  hard 
work  must  be  to  get  on  his  blind  side — make  him 
believe  that  I  am  trying  to  reform,  and  all  that. 
He  is  one  of  those  pious  fellows  who  neither  drink 
nor  smoke,  and  I  must  go  to  work  at  him  in  a 
pious  way." 

Just  then,  the  young  pilot  sauntered  out  of  the 
cabin,  and  turned  toward  his  chair  on  the  guard ; 
but  when  he  saw  that  another  close  by  it  was  occu- 
pied by  the  clerk,  who  was  smoking  a  cigar,  he 
walked  in  another  direction.  He  did  not  like 
Murray — that  was  the  clerk's  name — and  he  did 
not  want  to  have  anything  to  do  with  him.  It 
would  have  been  well  for  him,  if  he  had  held  to  this 
resolution ;  but  he  allowed  himself  to  be  talked  out 

of  it,  and  it  required  something  that  came  pretty 

18 


274  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

near  being  a  tragedy,  to  straighten  matters  out  for 
him. 

"Don't  go  away  mad,"  said  Murray,  when  he 
saw  George  moving  off  toward  the  other  side  of  the 
boat.  "  Since  we  are  to  be  shipmates  for  one  trip 
at  least,  let's  be  sociable.  Sit  down  here  and  talk 
to  a  fellow." 

The  young  pilot  could  not  well  refuse.  He  sat 
down  in  his  old  place,  and  of  course,  put  his  feet 
upon  the  rail.  All  the  men  and  boys  who  sat  on 
the  guards  made  it  a  point  to  do  that. 

"I  didn't  recognise  you  when  I  first  saw  you," 
said  the  clerk,  "  but  I  knew  you  as  soon  as  you 
spoke  about  that  pocket-book.  Most  fellows  would 
have  taken  the  reward  I  offered  you,  and  got  them- 
selves into  trouble  by  it.  I  didn't  know  you  were 
a  cub.  You  were  not  attached  to  the  Quitman, 
were  you?" 

uNo;  but  I  made  a  bargain  with  Mr.  Black 
during  the  trip,  and  I  have  been  with  him  ever 
since,"  replied  George. 

"Have  a  weed?"  asked  Murray,  producing  his 
cigar-case. 

"  I  am  obliged  to  you,  but  I  don't  smoke." 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  275 

"  You  don't  use  tobacco  or  liquor  in  any  form, 
do  you?" 

George  replied  that  he  never  had  and  never 
would. 

"  I  wish  from  the  bottom  of  my  heart  that  I  could 
say  the  same  thing,"  said  Murray.  "  I  am  a  total 
abstainer  now  so  far  as  liquor  is  concerned,  but 
tobacco  gets  me.  It  would  be  useless  for  me  to 
make  any  pretensions  to  goodness  in  your  presence, 
for  you  know  more  about  my  habits  than  I  wish  you 
did.  You  saw  the  company  I  kept  on  board  the 
Quitman  ;  and  I  don't  mind  telling  you,  confidenti- 
ally, that  I  came  pretty  near  getting  myself  into  a 
row  by  it.  If  I  could  only  keep  away  from  the  bar, 
I  should  soon  be  better  off  in  the  world  than  I  am 
now." 

"  Then,  why  don't  you  do  it?"  asked  George. 

"Ah!  That's  just  it.  Why  don't  I?  How 
shall  I  go  to  work?" 

"  Begin  by  throwing  away  that  cigar,"  said 
George  promptly. 

"There  she  goes!"  exclaimed  Murray;  and  as 
he  spoke,  the  cigar  left  his  hand  and  went  over  into 
the  barge  among  the  coal. 

"Now,"  continued  George,  "say  that  you  will 


276  GEORGE   AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

never  go  near  the  bar  again,  and  stick  to  it.  That's 
all  there  is  of  it." 

"  Yes ;  it's  a  very  easy  thing  to  say,  but  it's  an 
almost  impossible  thing  to  do.  You  don't  know 
how  hard  it  is  for  a  fellow  who  is  bound  down  by 
the  chains  of  habit,  to  keep  a  resolution  like  that. 
Why,  bless  you,  I  have  made  it  a  thousand  times 
and  broken  it  as  often.  I  took  my  last  pledge  three 
months  ago,  and  up  to  this  time  I  have  kept  it;  but 
I  may  go  back  on  it  before  I  am  an  hour  older.  If 
some  old  friend  should  corne  along  and  say :  '  Mur- 
ray, have  something?'  I'd  go  with  him  without 
thinking.  It  is  a  sort  of  second  nature  to  me.  I 
wish  I  could  be  thrown  more  into  the  society  of  such 
fellows  as  you  are,  and  less  into  the  company  of 
rivermen.  Nine  out  of  ten  of  them  spend  their 
money  as  fast  as  they  make  it,  and  that's  what 
keeps  them  on  the  river." 

George  leaned  his  elbows  on  the  railing,  rested 
his  chin  on  his  hands,  and  looked  down  at  the  men 
who  were  at  work  in  the  barge,  but  made  no  reply. 
The  longer  he  listened  to  Mr.  Murray,  the  less  he 
liked  him. 

"  Now,  you  can  do  me  a  great  favor,  if  you  will," 
continued  the  clerk,  "one  that  I  shall  always 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  277 

remember,  although  I  shall  never  be  able  to  repay 
it.  I  wish  you  would  stay  by  me  as  much  as  you 
can  while  you  are  off  duty.  Make  the  office  your 
headquarters.  Come  in  at  any  hour  of  the  day  or 
night — I  shall  not  always  be  at  work,  you  know — 
and  if  you  hear  anybody  invite  me  to  take  a  short 
walk  with  him,  just  tip  me  the  wink.  That  will 
put  me  in  mind  of  my  pledge  and  help  me  to  decline 
the  invitation." 

"  But  will  you  decline  ?"  asked  George.  "  Won't 
you  go,  anyhow?" 

"  Of  course  I'll  not  go ;  I'll  decline  every  time. 
All  I  want  is  somebody  close  at  my  elbow  to  keep 
my  pledge  constantly  in  mind.  If  you  will  do  that 
for  me  during  this  trip,  I  am  sure  that  by  the  time 
it  is  ended  I  shall  have  fallen  into  the  habit  of  say- 
ing i  No,'  and  then  I  shall  be  all  right.  To  tell 
you  the  truth,  there's  a  good  deal  depending  upon  your 
answer,"  added  Murray,  who  thought  by  the  ex- 
pression on  George's  face  that  he  did  not  much  like 
the  part  he  was  expected  to  perform.  "  My  bad 
habits  have  lost  several  very  fine  positions  for  me, 
and  if  I  don't  break  them  off,  I  shall  lose  this  and 
every  other  one  I  get.  But  I  have  tried  it  often 


278  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

enough  to  know  that  I  can't  abandon  them  without 
help.  What  do  you  say  ?" 

"  I  say  that  I  will  do  anything  I  can  to  help 
you,"  was  George's  answer. 

"  Thank  you  !"  exclaimed  Murray.  George's 
reply  argued  well  for  the  success  of  certain  plans 
upon  which  he  had  determined,  and  he  could  scarcely 
conceal  his  exultation.  "  By  the  way,"  he  added, 
"  are  you  on  speaking  terms  with  Mr.  Richard- 
son ?" 

"  I  am  quite  intimate  with  Tony,  who  steered 
this  boat  up  here  for  me  to-day,  but  I  am  not  much 
acquainted  with  his  father,  although  I  have  visited 
at  his  house  by  Tony's  invitation." 

"  Well,  you'll  not  say  a  word  to  him,  or  anybody 
else,  about  what  happened  on  board  the  Quitman?" 
said  Murray. 

"  Not  a  word." 

"All  right.  I  am  done  with  tobacco,  liquor  and 
cards  for  ever,"  said  the  clerk,  with  great  determi- 
nation "I'll  rub  it  all  out,  and  begin  over  again ; 
turn  over  a  new  leaf,  and  see  if  I  can't  make  a  clean 
record  for  myself." 

The  two  sat  there  on  the  guards  for  a  long  time 
talking  in  this  way,  Mr.  Murray  apparently  being 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  279 

very  communicative  and  confidential,  while  George 
was  exactly  the  reverse,  and  finally  they  bade  each 
other  good-night  and  separated  to  their  rooms. 

"The  plan  works  very  well  so  far,"  thought 
Murray,  as  he  locked  the  door  of  the  office  behind 
him,  and  sat  down  to  take  another  smoke.  u  Acker- 
man  is  rather  suspicious  of  me,  and  I  shall  have 
hard  work  to  gain  his  confidence.  I  am  afraid  that 
the  greatest  trouble  will  be  to  get  him  in  the  habit 
of  loafing  about  the  office.  If  I  can  do  that,  I'll 
gee  that  he  puts  his  foot  into  a  very  pretty  trap. 
He  got  me  into  this  scrape,  and  he  must  help  me 
out." 

"  He  doesn't  seem  to  be  a  bad  fellow  at  heart," 
thought  George,  as  he  tumbled  into  his  bunk  in 
Texas  ;  "  but  I  must  say  that  he's  mighty  palaver- 
ing, and  that  his  face  is  almost  too  red  and  bloated 
for  that  of  a  man  who  has  stuck  to  the  pledge  for 
three  consecutive  months,  as  he  claims  to  have  done. 
I  hope  he  is  in  earnest  in  his  desire  to  reform,  arid 
if  I  can  help  him  by  giving  him  a  wink  now  and 
then,  I  shall  be  perfectly  willing  to  do  it." 

It  was  not  long  after  that  before  the  officers  of  the 
boat  began  to  tell  one  another  that  the  chief  clerk 
and  Mr.  Black's  cub  had  taken  a  wonderful  liking 


280  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

for  each  other.  George  was  in  the  office  almost  all 
the  time,  and  when  the  Telegraph  left  the  coal-fleet 
on  Monday  morning,  and  went  back  to  the  city, 
Murray  steered  her  down  for  him.  As  soon  as  she 
was  made  fast  alongside  the  wharf-boat,  George  went 
ashore  to  make  a  few  purchases,  and  when  he  came 
back,  he  found  the  clerk  full  of  news. 

"  Ackerman,"  said  he,  as  the  young  pilot  entered 
the  office  and  threw  down  a  copy  of  a  morning 
paper,  which  Murray  had  requested  him  to  buy  for 
him,  "  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  Tony  Richardson  has 
steered  the  Telegraph  for  you  for  the  last  time." 

"Why,  what  do  you  mean?"  exclaimed  George. 
"  Has  he — has  any  misfortune  befallen  him  ?" 

He  was  about  to  ask  if  Tony  had  run  away,  but 
checked  himself  just  in  time. 

"I  mean  just  what  I  say,"  answered  Murray. 
"  On  Saturday  morning  the  Armada  took  one  of 
VandegrifFs  barges  down  the  river  so  that  she  coulvl 
coal  up  while  she  was  under  way,  and  Tony  went 
in  charge  of  the  barge  to  check  the  coal  and  bring 
back  the  money.  The  tug  that  Vandegriff  sent 
down  the  river  found  the  barge  and  brought  it  back 
yesterday  morning,  but  there  was  no  Tony  with 
her." 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  281 

"Yes,  sir;  lie's  run  away,"  thought  George, 
climbing  upon  the  high  stool  and  staring  blankly  at 
the  clerk. 

"I  don't  wonder  that  you  are  astonished,"  con- 
tinued Murray.  "  So  is  everybody.  Poor  Tony  is 
at  the  bottom  of  the  river,  beyond  a  doubt,  but  he 
gave  a  good  account  of  himself  before  he  went 
there,  for  both  the  mokes  came  back  with  broken 
heads." 

"  Great  goodness !"  exclaimed  George,  almost 
tumbling  off  the  high  stool  in  his  excitement. 
"  Then  he  didn't — do  you  mean  to  say  that  the 
negroes  threw  him  overboard  ?' 

"  Certainly  ;  they  are  in  jail  for  it  now  ;  but  the 
money  can't  be  found.  They  acknowledge  that 
they  made  an  effort  to  rob  Tony,  but  declare  that 
they  didn't  'hurt  him  at  all.  They  say  that  he 
jumped  into  the  skiff  that  was  towing  alongside  the 
barge,  and  got  away  with  the  money ;  they  couldn't 
swim  a  stroke,  and  therefore  they  were  obliged  to 
stay  with  the  barge  until  the  tug  took  them  off. 
The  general  impression  seems  to  be  that  they 
knocked  Tony  down  with  a  chunk  of  coal  and 
robbed  him,  and  that  he  died  from  the  effects  of 
the  blow.  Becoming  frightened  at  what  they  had 


282  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

done,  they  threw  the  body  overboard,  hid  the 
money,  and  made  up  this  story  to  lessen  their 
punishment." 

"  If  they  did  that,  they  didn't  show  much  sense 
in  staying  with  the  barge,"  said  George,  as  soon  as 
he  could  speak.  "  Why  didn't  they  get  into  the 
skiff  and  go  ashore?" 

"  I  can  account  for  that  only  on  the  supposition 
that  the  skiff  was  lost  while  the  Armada  was  towing 
the  barge  down  the  river,"  answered  Murray.  "If 
Tony  ran  off  with  it,  as  the  darkies  say  he  did 
where  is  he?  If  he  had  rode  up  the  river,  he 
would  have  met  the  tug,  and  if  he  had  tied  up  to 
the  bank,  he  would  have  seen  her  when  she  passed 
him.  When  the  captain  of  the  tug  saw  the  negroes' 
heads  and  listened  to  their  story,  he  was  so  certain 
that  they  had  killed  Tony,  that  he  tied  them  hard 
and  fast,  and  never  wasted  a  minute  in  looking  for 
the  boy,  although  he  kept  up  a  constant  whistling, 
which  Tony  would  certainly  have  heard  if  he  had 
been  able  to  hear  anything." 

George  was  so  deeply  affected  by  this  gloomy  news 
that  he  could  not  eat  any  dinner;  He  visited  the  tug, 
which  lay  at  a  little  distance  down  the  levee,  sought 
an  interview  with  her  captain,  and  after  telling  him 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  283 

that  lie  was  Tony's  friend,  questioned  him  closely  in 
regard  to  his  disappearance,  but  without  learning 
anything  more  than  Murray  had  already  told  him. 

"It's  my  opinion,"  said  he,  as  he  walked  slowly 
back  to  his  boat,  "  that  we  shall  hear  more  of  this 
matter  some  day.  If  the  money  wasn't  gone,  I 
should  feel  certain  that  Tony  had  cleared  out ;  but 
somehow  I  can't  bring  myself  to  believe  that  he 
would  steal  funds  to  help  him  along.  I  don't  think 
he's  that  sort." 

The  missing  boy  was  constantly  in  George's 
mind  during  the  next  few  days.  He  and  Murray 
talked  about  little  besides  the  mystery  attending  his 
disappearance,  and  meanwhile  their  intimacy  in- 
creased to  suclr  a  degree  that  the  officers  of  the 
boat  began  to  speak  of  them  as  the  "  twins." 
Murray  never  lost  sight  of  the  object  he  had  in  view 
in  working  his  way  into  the  young  pilot's  good 
graces,  and  circumstances  seemed  to  conspire  to  help 
him.  He  took  particular  pains  to  have  it  known 
among  the  officers  that  he  had  " sworn  off"  on 
everything  that  was  bad,  and  that  George  was  the 
one  who  had  induced  him  to  do  it.  As  a  conse- 
quence the  invitations  to  visit  the  bar  that  he 
received  were  numeious  and  frequent.  They  were 


284  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

given  principally  in  George's  presence,  but  lie  was 
never  obliged  to  tip  Murray  the  wink,  for  "the  latter 
seemed  to  be  always  on  his  guard.  This  made 
George  believe  that,  he  had  wronged  the  clerk  by 
thinking  that  his  desire  to  reform  was  not  sincere, 
and  the  result  was  that  he  gave  him  his  entire  con- 
fidence, and  put  implicit  faith  in  everything  he  said. 
He  spent  almost  all  his  time  when  off  duty  in  the 
office,  and  whenever  Murray  could  snatch  a  quarter 
of  an  hour  from  his  work,  he  was  always  to  be  found 
in  the  pilot-house. 

The  Telegraph  reached  her  journey's  end  in  due 
time,  her  freight  was  discharged  in  good  condition, 
her  heavy  bills  were  paid,  and  the  money  deposited 
in  the  safe,  of  which  Mr.  Murray  carried  the  key. 
In  a  few  days  she  was  steaming  back  up  the  river, 
with  a  large  passenger  list  and  a  lot  of  other  freight 
stowed  away  on  the  main  deck  and  in  the  hold. 
Now  the  chief  clerk  began  to  show  signs  of  nervous- 
ness and  excitement.  Every  turn  of  the  paddle- 
wheels  brought  him  nearer  to  St.  Louis,  and  to  the 
creditors  whom  he  would  have  to  face  when  he  got 
there.  His  situation  being  a  desperate  one,  he  had 
determined  upon  desperate  measures  to  get  him  out 
of  it.  If  his  plans  failed,  he  was  doomed. 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  285 

"  You  say  I  look  worried,"  remarked  Murray,  one 
day,  when  he  and  George  and  Walker,  the  second 
clerk,  were  alone  in  the  office;  "  and  so  would  you. 
Ackerman,  if  you  had  my  responsibility  resting  on 
your  shoulders.  I  don't  mind  telling  you  in  Walk- 
er's presence,  because  it  is  all  in  the  family,  that 
there  is  money  enough  in  this  safe  under  my  desk 
to  start  us  all  on  the  road  to  fortune." 

"Who — whoop !"  shouted  the  pilot  through  the 
trumpet.  "Anything  for  Columbia?" 

"Yes!"  yelled  Murray.  "Walker,  go  out  and 
warn  the  passengers  who  are  to  get  off  there,  and 
I'll  see  to  the  freight." 

Walker  left  the  office,  and  Murray  took  posses- 
sion of  the  stool  he  had  just  vacated. 

"  I  shouldn't  think  you  would  like  to  have  so 
much  money  in  your  charge,"  said  George. 

"Well,  we  do  sometimes  deposit  it  in  the  bank 
and  take  a  check  on  St.  Louis  for  it.  That's  the 
better  plan,  but  I  was  too  busy  to  do  it,  and  besides 
I  didn't  know  just  how  much  I  might  want  to  use 
during  the  trip.  Another  thing,  I  never  heard  of 
money  being  stolen  from  the  office  of  a  steamboat. 
I  don't  suppose  you  could  open  the  safe  if  I  should 
give  you  the  key,  could  you  ?" 


286 


OR, 


"I  am  sure  I  couldn't,"  answered  George.  "I 
don't  know  the  combination." 

"Ill  give  it  to  you,"  said  Murray. 

"That  wouldn't  be  right,  would  it?"  asked 
George,  doubtfully.  "  Suppose  the  safe  should  be 
robbed,  and  folks  knew  that  I  was  acquainted  with 
the  combination.  What  would  they  think  about 
it?" 

"Folks  would  never  know  anything  it;  and 
besides,  as  soon  as  you  had  opened  the  safe,  I 
should  lock  it  again  on  another  combination,  and 
take  good  care  of  the  key,"  said  the  clerk,  with  a 
laugh.  "  Here,  try  it  just  for  fun.  It's  all  in  the 
family." 

George,  having  never  done  business  for  any  body 
except  himself,  did  not  know  that  business  men, 
and  their  clerks,  too,  if  they  are  honest,  are  very 
particular  about  their  safes,  and  that  they  never, 
under  any  circumstances,  invite  outsiders  to  tamper 
with  them.  He  did  not  know  that  the  most  of 
them  lay  so  much  stress  on  this  point,  that  when- 
ever they  go  into  an  office  where  there  is  an  open 
safe,  they  take  care  to  keep  away  from  it;  but  it 
seems  as  if  his  common  sense  ought  to  have  told 
him  that  he  was  doing  what  he  ought  not  to  do, 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  287 

when  he  picked  up  the  key  that  Murray  took  out 
of  his  pocket  and  laid  on  his  desk,  inserted  it 
into  the  lock,  and  went  to  work  on  the  combination 
the  latter  had  given  him,  which,  by  the  way,  was 
not  the  right  one. 

"  You  can't  open  it  to  save  your  life ;  you  are  a 
regular  bungler,"  said  Murray,  hoping  to  arouse 
George's  pride  or  combativeness  to  such  a  degree 
that  he  would  keep  at  work  at  the  safe  until  he 
could  have  time  to  carry  out  a  very  important  part 
of  his  scheme.  "  I  must  go  down  and  give  the 
mate  a  list  of  the  freight  that  is  to  be  put  off  at 
Columbia,  and  you  stay  here  and  work  at  it  till  I 
come  back.  The  door  shuts  with  a  spring-lock  and 
nobody  can  surprise  you." 

These  words  ought  to  have  aroused  George  to  a 
sense  of  the  situation,  but  they  did  not.  He  never 
suspected  anything,  but  resumed  his  work  after 
Murray  went  out  into  the  cabin,  telling  himself  the 
while  that  the  lock  was  more  complicated  than  the 
one  on  the  safe  at  home,  for  he  could  not  make  the 
combination  work  at  all. 

Murray's  first  care  when  he  heard  the  spring- lock 
close  behind  him,  was  to  look  around  foi  Walker. 
whom  he  finally  found  on  the  boiler-deck. 


288  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL  ;    OR, 

"  Those  passengers  seemed  to  have  disappeared 
all  of  a  sudden,"  said  the  second  clerk.  "I 
thought  there  were  seven  to  get  off  at  Columbia, 
and  I  can  find  but  three." 

<;  Never  mind  the  passengers,"  said  Murray, 
speaking  as  if  he  were  in  a  great  hurry.  "  I  must 
go  below  for  a  few  minutes,  and  I  wish  you  would 
step  into  the  office  and  stay  there.  I  left  Acker- 
man  there  alone,  and — by  the  way — this  is  between 
you  and  me — I  did  very  wrong  to  tell  him  about 
the  large  amount  of  money  in  the  safe.  I  don't  at 
all  like  the  way  he  has  hung  around  and  questioned 
me  ever  since  we  left  St.  Louis." 

Walker  pricked  up  his  ears  at  once. 

"  I  wondered  why  you  let  him  make  the  office  a 
loafing-place,"  said  he.  "I  have  several  times 
been  on  the  point  of  telling  him  to  go  out,  but  you 
always  appeared  to  be  glad  to  see  him ." 

"Well,  no;  I  wasn't  glad  to  see  him  on  account 
of  the  safe,  you  know,  and  the  money  in  it,"  inter- 
rupted the  chief  clerk.  "But  he  was  poor  Tony's 
bosom  friend — intimate  with  the  family  and  all  that. 
Hurry  up,  Walker." 

Murray  went  below,  and  the  second  clerk  has- 
tened toward  the  office.  He  did  not  go  through 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  289 

the  cabin,  but  passed  along  the  guard,  moving  with 
noiseless  footsteps,  and  looking  through  the  glass- 
door  saw  George  kneeling  in  front  of  the  safe  twirl- 
ing the  knob.  The  sight  made  Walker  about  as 
mad  as  a  man  ever  gets  to  be.  Opening  the  door 
with  a  quick  push,  he  stepped  across  the  threshold 
and  confronted  the  young  pilot,  who  arose  to  his 
feet  looking  not  a  little  confused.  The  first 
thought  that  passed  through  his  mind  was  that 
Walker  suspected  him  of  trying  to  rob  the  safe, 
and  the  expression  on  the  second  clerk's  face  cer- 
tainly warranted  that  supposition. 

"  I  guess  I'll  not  try  any  longer,"  said  George, 
throwing  the  key  upon  the  desk. 

"  No,  I  guess  I  wouldn't,"  said  Walker,  picking 
up  the  key  with  one  hand  and  trying  the  door  of 
the  safe  with  the  other.  "  What  business  have  you 
with  this  key  anyway,  and  how  did  it  come  into 
your  possession  ?" 

"  Murray  gave  it  to  me  and  told  me  to  see  if  I 
could  open  the  safe,"  replied  George,  drawing  him- 
self up  and  steadily  returning  Mr.  Walker's  search- 
ing gaze.  "  He  gave  me  the  combination,  too." 

"  That's    a    little    too    thin,    Ackerman,"    said 

Walker,   closing  the   door  and  throwing  the  catch 
19 


290  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

into  its  place.  ^  I  have  known  Murray  too  long  to 
believe  any  such  story." 

"What  do  you  mean  by  that  ?"  demanded  the 
young  pilot,  flushing  hotly.  "  If  you  throw  out 
any  more  insinuations,  I'll  send  you  over  the  rail 
into  the  river.  Open  that  door." 

Walker  was  a  full  grown  man,  but  George  was 
his  equal  in  stature  and  weight,  and  vastly  his 
superior  in  strength.  He  looked  dangerous  as  he 
stood  there  with  his  sleeves  pushed  back  and  his 
fists  doubled  up,  and  that  the  clerk  thought  he  was 
dangerous,  was  evident,  from  the  haste  he  used  in 
opening  the  door  and  stepping  aside  so  that  George 
could  pass  out. 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  291 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

WALKER   DISCOVERS   SOMETHING. 

i~^  EORGE,  who  was  almost  ready  to  boil  over 
with  rage,  went  straight  to  the  lower  deck  and 
sought  an  interview  with  the  chief  clerk.  That 
individual  saw  him  coming,  and  hastened  to  meet 
him,  for  he  knew  better  than  to  hold  any  conversa- 
tion with  him  just  then  in  the  presence  of  a  third 
party.  So  great  an  indiscretion  as  that  would  have 
been  the  death  blow  to  his  plans,  which  were  only 
half  carried  out. 

"  My  dear  fellow,"  said  he,  in  a  low  tone,  taking 
the  young  pilot  by  the  arm  and  leading  him  toward 
the jackstaff,  "what's  the  matter  with  you?  You 
are  as  white  as  a  ghost." 

"A  most  unfortunate  thing  has  happened,"  re- 
plied George,  somewhat  mollified  by  the  presence 
and  touch  of  the  man  whom  he  believed  to  bo  his 


292  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

friend.  "  While  I  was  trying  to  open  the  safe, 
Walker  came  in  through  the  outside  door  and 
caught  me  at  it." 

"Suppose  he  did?"  said  Murray,  soothingly. 
"  What  of  it  ?  Didn't  I  tell  you  it  was  all  in  the 
family  ?" 

"  Well,  you'll  find  that  you  have  got  anything 
but  a  peaceable  family  in  your  hands  if  Walker 
ever  speaks  to  me  again  as  he  did  when  he  came 
into  the  office,"  said  George  through  his  clenched 
teeth.  "Do  you  know  that  he  just  as  good  as  told 
me  that  I  was  trying  to  rob  the  safe  ?  I  came 
within  a  hair's  breadth  of  knocking  him  clear  across 
the  state  of  Arkansaw." 

As  the  office  was  situated  on  the  port  side  of  the 
boiler-deck,  that  was  the  direction  in  which  the 
second  clerk  would  have  gone  if  George  had  struck 
him.  Its  legislature  had  not  then  passed  the  law 
declaring  that  the  last  syllable  of  the  name  of  the 
state  should  be  pronounced  as  though  it  were  spelled 
"  saw  "  instead  of  "  sas,"  but  the  river  men  believed, 
no  doubt,  that  such  a  law  would  be  passed  in  time, 
for  they  always  called  it  "  Arkansaw." 

"  He  even  had  the  impudence  to  lock  the  door, 
as  if  he  were  going  to  keep  me  a  prisoner  there," 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  29S 

continued  George,  hotly ;  "  but  I  tell  you,  he  opened 
it  pretty  quickly. n 

"No  matter,  no  matter,"  whispered  Murray. 
"  Don't  talk  so  loud.  It  isn't  necessary  that  every- 
body should  know  it." 

"  I  don't  care  who  knows  it.  I  can  see  now  that 
I  have  been  foolish,  but  I  have  done  nothing  wrong. 
Walker  asked  me  how  the  key  came  into  my  hands, 
and  when  I  told  him  that  you  gave  it  to  me  he  said 
plainly  that  he  didn't  believe  it.  But  you  did  give 
it  to  me,  didn't  you  ?"  said  George,  turning  his 
flashing  eyes  full  upon  the  chief  clerk. 

"  Of  course,  I  did  ;  certainly." 

"  Then  come  up  to  the  office  and  tell  him  so,"  said 
George,  turning  Murray  around  so  that  he  faced 
toward  the  stairs  leading  to  the  boiler  deck. 

"  My  dear  fellow,  be  easy  now,"  said  the  clerk, 
coaxingly.  "  I  wouldn't  bring  you  and  Walker 
face  to  face  while  you  are  in  such  a  passion  for  any 
money.  He  is  quick-tempered,  and  said  some 
things  he  had  no  business  to  say,  and  very  likely 
you  did  the  same.  Hold  on,  now,  and  let  me  do 
the  talking,"  he  added,  when  George  withdrew  his 
arm,  and  doubled  up  his  fists  as  if  he  were  about  to 
say  something  emphatic.  "  I  know  you  think  now 


294  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OK, 

that  your  language  and  your  actions  were  perfectly 
justifiable,  but  when  you  get  good-natured,  you  will 
be  of  a 'different — Oh,  yes,  you  will,"  said  the  clerk, 
seeing  that  the  young  pilot  shook  his  head  very 
decidedly.  "  Never  mind  ;  leave  it  to  me,  and  I'll 
straighten  it  all  out  as  smooth  as — " 

Murray  shut  one  eye,  looked  at  George  through 
the  half-closed  lids  of  the  other,  and  spread  his  open 
hands  before  him  as  if  he  were  smoothing  out  a 
table  cloth. 

"All  right.  I  want  you  to  be  in  earnest  about 
what  you  do,"  said  George,  throwing  all  the 
emphasis  he  could  into  his  words.  "No  half-way 
work,  you  understand.  Walker  must  be  told,  in 
so  many  words,  that  you  asked  me  to  see  if  I 
could  open  the  safe,  that  you  gave  me  the  key,  and 
sat  there  on  your  stool  and  saw  me  work  at  it. 
You  did,  didn't  you?" 

Again  the  flashing  eyes,  which  seemed  to  shoot 
forth  angry  sparks  of  fire,  were  turned  full  upon 
the  clerk,  who  would  no  more  have  dared  to  deny 
it,  than  he  would  have  dared  to  enter  a  powder 
magazine  with  an  uncovered  light. 

"I  don't  want  anybody  to  have  so  poor  an 
opinion  of  me,  and  I  can  depend  upon  you  to 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  295 

explain  matters  to  him,  can't  I  ?"continued  George. 
"  Make  sure  work  of  it  while  you  are  about  it,  for 
if  you  don't,  I  give  you  fair  warning  that  I  shall 
broach  the  subject  in  the  presence  of  witnesses  the 
very  first  time  I  can  catch  you  two  together." 

"  George,  you  may  depend  upon  me  to  the 
death,"  said  Murray,  solemnly.  "You  have  been 
a  true  friend  to  me  since  you  have  been  on  this 
boat,  and  I  am  truly  sorry  that  my  unbounded 
confidence  in  you  has  been  the  means  of  bringing 
about  this  misunderstanding  between  you  and 
Walker.  Why  couldn't  he  have  kept  out  of  the 
office  until  you  got  through  ?" 

"  Why  couldn't  I  have  let  the  safe  alone  ?"  said 
George,  bitterly.  "  If  I  had  done  that,  there 
would  have  been  no  trouble." 

"  Don't  think  about  it.  Go  to  bed  now,  and 
when  you  get  up  I  shall  be  able  to  tell  you  that 
it  is  all  right.  By  the  way,  George,  don't  say  a 
word  to  anybody  about  it." 

"  I  believe  I'll  go  to  Mr.  Black  and  tell  him  the 
whole  thing,"  replied  the  young  pilot. 

"  My  goodness,  Ackerman,  don't  do  that !" 
exclaimed  Murray,  in  great  alarm.  "  Can't  you 
see  how  such  a  proceeding  would  injure  me?  It 


296  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

would  get  to  Richardson's  ears,  of  course,  and  he 
would  sack  me  as  soon  as  he  heard  of  it.  Just 
leave  everything  to  me,  and  if  I  don't  put  you 
right  with  Walker,  you  can  take  the  matter  into 
your  own  hands." 

George  agreed  to  this  with  some  reluctance, 
although  on  the  face  of  it  it  appeared  to  he  a 
very  fair  proposition.  Acting  upon  the  clerk's 
advice,  he  went  up  to  his  room  and  lay  down  in 
his  bunk  to  make  up  for  the  sleep  he  had  lost  the 
night  before  while  standing  at  the  wheel,  and 
Murray  turned  toward  the  office.  He  went  in 
through  the  cabin,  opened  the  door  with  his  key 
and  stepped  across  the  threshold,  whistling  a  lively 
tune;  but  he  stopped  very  abruptly  and  looked 
inquiringly  at  the  second  clerk,  who  was  sitting 
on  the  high  stool,  scowling  fiercely. 

"Hallo!  What's  the  matter  with  you?"  ex- 
claimed Murray. 

"  Where's  the  key  of  the  safe?"  asked  Walker, 
in  reply. 

"  Well,  you  could  have  asked  that  question  with- 
out looking  at  me  so  savagely,  couldn't  you?"  said 
the  chief  clerk,  as  he  stepped  to  the  lower  bunk 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  297 

and  threw  back  the  pillow.  "  What  do  you  want 
of  it?" 

Walker  did  not  answer.  -He  sat  on  the  stool 
and  watched  the  movements  of  his  superior,  who 
looked  all  around  the  head  of  the  bunk,  and  then 
uttering  an  exclamation  of  astonishment,  began 
pulling  off  the  quilts.  In  two  minutes  more  the 
bed  clothes,  mattress  and  all,  were  piled  in  the 
middle  of  the  floor,  and  Murray  was  searching  his 
pockets  with  frantic  haste. 

"It's  gone!"  said  he,  dropping  his  hands  by 
his  side.  "Look  here,  Walker,"  he  almost  shouted. 
"  What  are  you  up  to  ?  Hand  it  here." 

The  second  clerk  very  coolly  took  the  key  out 
of  his  pocket  and  laid  it  upon  the  desk. 

"I  came  in  just  in  the  nick  of  time,"  said  he. 
"I  found  Ackerman  trying  to  open  the  safe?" 

Murray  started  as  if  he  had  been  shot,  and 
leaned  heavily  on  the  desk  for  support. 

"I  have  thought  all  along  that  you  were  alto- 
gether too  free  with  him,"  added  the  second  clerk. 
"Do  you  generally  keep  the  key  under  your 
pillow?" 

"Always,  '  replied  Murray.     "It  is  safe  there, 


298  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

and  if  I  carried  it  about  with  me  I  might  lose  it, 
you  know." 

"Ackerman  must  have  seen  you  put  it  there 
some  time,  or  take  it  from  there,"  said  Walker. 
"  At  any  rate,  he  found  it  as  soon  as  you  went  out, 
and  went  to  work  on  the  safe.  You  ought  to  have 
seen  his  face  when  I  opened  the  door  and  sur- 
prised him.  I  tell  you,  Murray,  that  boy  is  a 
hard  community.  One  would  think  that  he  would 
have  been  overwhelmed  with  fear  and  shame  when 
he  found  that  he  was  caught,  but  he  wasn't.  He 
tried  to  explain  matters  by  saying  that  you  had 
given  him  the  key  and  the  combination,  too,  and 
told  him  to  open  the  safe  if  he  could." 

"What  a  villain!"  exclaimed  Murray,  indig- 
nantly. 

"  Of  course  he  is.  When  he  saw  that  I  couldn't 
swallow  any  such  story  as  that,  he  showed  fight.  I 
locked  the  door  and  thought  I  would  keep  him  in 
here  until  you  came,  but  I  didn't  dare  do  it." 

When  the  second  clerk  ceased  speaking.  Murray 
looked  down  at  the  floor,  shook  his  head  and  sighed 
deeply.  "  So  that's  what  he  has  been  hanging 
around  me  for,  is  it?"  said  he.  "  An  hour  ago  I 
wouldn't  have  believed  such  a  thing  of  him." 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  299 

"What  are  you  going  to  do  about  it?" 

"I  don't  know.  Wait  until  I  get  my  wits 
together  so  that  I  can  think  clearly.  Walker,  I 
don't  believe  I  can  ever  trust  anybody  again." 

"You'd  better  never  trust  a  stranger.  You 
didn't  show  your  usual  good  sense  in  taking  up 
with  Ackerman  as  you  did.  You  ought  to  go 
straight  to  the  old  man  with  it.  If  I  were  captain 
of  this  boat  I'd  put  him  and  his  trunk  ashore  right 
here  in  the  woods." 

"  I'll  tell  you  what  I  think  about  it,"  said  Mur- 
ray, suddenly  straightening  up,  and  looking  at  his 
assistant  as  if  a  bright  idea  had  just  occurred  to 
him.  "It's  an  ill  wind  that  blows  nobody  good, 
and  it  seems  to  me  that  we  can  make  this  thing 
benefit  us  in  some  way.  As  the  matter  stands  now, 
I  am  as  likely  to  be  punished  as  Ackerman  is,  and 
in  the  same  way — by  being  kicked  off  the  boat.  I 
will  be  accused  of  negligence  of  duty.  Now, 
I  think  I  see  a  way  to  avoid  that,  and  put  a  few 
dollars  into  the  pockets  of  each  of  us  at  the  same 
time." 

"  I  am  in  for  that,"  said  Walker. 

"I  thought  you  would  be.  You  say  this  fellow 
is  a  hard  one,  and  that's  all  the  better  for  us,  for 


300  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL  ;    OR, 

lie  will  not  be  satisfied  with  making  one  attempt  on 
the  safe.  He'll  come  again,  depend  upon  it,  so  I 
say  let's  hush  this  matter  up,  lisp  not  a  word  of  it 
to  anybody,  and  keep  our  eyes  open  and  catch  him 
in  the  act.  Of  course  Richardson  would  hear  of 
it,  and  what  would  be  the  result  ?  He'd  say : 
'  Those  are  wide-awake  clerks  aboard  that  boat — 
honest  and  always  looking  out  for  things.  Boys, 
here's  a  check  for  a  couple  of  hundred  apiece,  to 
show  you  that  your  fidelity  is  appreciated.'  Eh?" 

Mr.  Walker  loved  money,  and  such  an  argument 
as  this  was  not  without  its  effect  upon  him.  Mur- 
ray, seeing  by  the  expression  on  his  face  that  he 
had  made  a  point,  hastened  to  add  : 

"  Now,  there  is  only  one  way  in  which  this  can 
be  accomplished,  and  that  is  to  make  Ackerman 
believe  that  we  don't  suspect  him  of  anything 
wrong.  We'll  be  friendly  and  sociable  with  him,  as 
we  always  have  been,  and  never  refer  to  the  matter 
in  any  way.  If  he  says  anything  to  either  of  us 
about  it,  and  most  likely  he  will,  for  these  hardened 
fellows  are  the  very  ones  to  try  to  face  down  an  accu- 
sation by  an  assumption  of  innocence,  we'll  assure 
him  that  it  is  all  right.  What  do  you  think  of  it  ?  " 

"I  hardly  know,"  said  the  second  clerk,  slowly. 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  301 

"  I  should  like  to  see  him  punished,  for  he  richly 
deserves  it." 

"  Of  course  he  does ;  but  think  of  the  possible 
reward." 

u  I  do  think  of  it,  and  that's  what  makes  me 
hesitate.  If  I  was  sure  that  we  could  catch  him, 
and  that  that  stingy  old  Richardson  would  give  us 
anything  " — 

"  We'll  catch  him,"  interrupted  Murray.     Don't    . 
you   worry   about   that.     As  for  Richardson,   he'll 
come  down  handsomely.     We  don't  run  any  risk, 
you   understand,  for   Ackerman  doesn't  know    the 
combination." 

"But  he  might  blunder  on  to  it,"  said  the  second 
clerk. 

"  There  is  not  one  chance  in  a  thousand,"  replied 
Murray  confidently. 

The  result  of  this  interview  was  that  at  the  end 
of  half  an  hour  the  chief  clerk  had  brought  his  com- 
panion around  to  his  way  of  thinking,  and  it  was 
agreed  between  them  that  they  would  treat  George 
in  the  future  as  they  had  treated  him  in  the  past ; 
that  they  would  act  us  though  they  were  utterly 
ignorant  of  the  fact  that  he  had  been  guilty  of  any 
wrong ;  that  if  he  ever  referred  to  the  matter  in  the 


302  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

presence  of  either  or  both  of  them  they  would  laugh 
at  it ;  and  that  while  they  were  exerting  themselves 
to  the  utmost  to  make  him  believe  that  they  still 
had  every  faith  in  his  honesty,  they  would  watch 
him  as  closely  as  ever  a  cat  watched  a  mouse. 
Having  arrived  at  this  understanding,  Murray,  who 
wanted  to  be  alone  for  a  few  minutes,  walked  out 
on  the  guard,  rubbing  his  hands  gleefully  as  he 
went. 

"  If  I  had  the  ordering  of  things  I  couldn't  make 
them  work  more  to  my  satisfaction,"  said  he  to 
himself.  "  There  hasn't  been  a  single  hitch  so  far, 
and  if  I  am  sharp  there  needn't  be  any  at  all.  I 
shall  be  able  to  pay  that  note  and  have  a  snug  sum 
left  over  to  put  into  my  pocket,  and  no  one  will  be 
the  wiser  for  it.  Walker  and  I  will  be  sacked  for 
negligence,  but  I  don't  care  for  that.  I  wonder 
what  he  would  think  if  he  knew  that  he  was  pre- 
paring the  way  for  his  own  discharge?  I  must 
work  rapidly  now,  for  my  time  grows  shorter  every 
day.  I  must  be  very  cautious,  too,  for  Ackerman 
has  shown  himself  to  be  a  fiery  fellow,  and  if  I  give 
him  any  reason  to  suspect  me,  he  may  knock  me 
clear  across  the  state  of  Arkansaw." 

The  young  pilot  awoke  about  supper  time  from  a 


LIFE    IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  303 

troubled  slumber,  during  which  he  dreamed  that  he 
had  been  detected  in  numberless  attempts  to  open 
safes  that  contained  immense  amounts  of  money, 
and  having  made  his  toilet  with  great  care,  he  de- 
scended to  the  boiler-deck  and  began  to  look  around 
for  the  clerks.  He  had  made  up  his  mind  to  one 
thing,  and  that  was,  that  that  unfortunate  affair  of 
the  afternoon  would  have  to  be  satisfactorily  settled 
before  he  went  into  the  pilot-house  that  night.  The 
chief  clerk  had  been  allowed  ample  time  to  explain 
matters  to  Walker,  and  if  he  hadn't  done  it,  George 
was  determined  that  he  would  do  it  himself. 

"  I'll  take  him  before  the  captain,  that's  what  I'll 
do,"  said  the  boy,  as  he  turned  toward  the  cabin 
after  looking  in  vain  for  the  clerks  about  the  deck. 
"  He  knows  very  well  that  I  never  would  have 
thought  of  touching  that  safe  if  he  hadn't  asked  me 
to  do  it,  and  he  must  tell  the  captain  so  in  my  pre- 
sence. Of  course  I  shall  be  sorry  to  get  him  into 
trouble,  but  I  am  not  going  to  rest  under  such  an 
imputation  as  this  any  longer." 

When  George  entered  the  cabin  he  saw  that  the 
window  opening  into  the  office  was  raised,  and  that 
the  two  clerks  were  at  their  desk.  As  he  stepped  up 
and  rested  his  arms  on  the  window-sill  he  thought 


304  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    CR3 

that  Murray  started  a  little  and  changed  color,  but 
Walker  greeted  him  with  a  cheery  "  Hollo  !  " 

"  What  have  you  to  say  to  me  ?  "  demanded  the 
boy,  without  returning  the  salutation. 

"  That  I  was  a  fool  for  my  suspicions,"  answered 
Walker.  It's  all  square.  What  a  scoundrel  he 
is,"  said  the  second  clerk,  to.  himself.  "  He  is 
actually  trying  to  bluff  us  down." 

"  You  are  satisfied  now  that  I  had  no  intention 
of  stealing  your  money,  are  you  ?  "  said  George. 

"Perfectly  satisfied  as  to  everything,"  was  the 
reassuring  reply.  "  Go  around  to  the  door  and 
come  in." 

"No,  I  thank  you,"  answered  George,  who  had 
resolved  that  he  would  never  go  into  the  office  again. 
"  I'll  stroll  around  a  little  before  supper,  for  I  must 
be  at  the  wheel  until  midnight." 

So  saying,  he  turned  and  walked  away,  feeling  as 
if  a  mountain  of  huge  dimensions  had  been  lifted 
from  his  shoulders.  Why  was  it  that  he  did  not 
in  quire 'particularly,  as  to  the  points  upon  which 
Walker  had  been  satisfied  ?  Did  he  know  that 
Murray  had  given  him  the  key  ;  that  he  had  asked 
him  to.  try  his  skill  upon  the  safe ;  and  that  he  had 
watched  him  while  he  was  at  work  upon  it  ?  The 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  305 

chief  clerk  was  afraid  that  some  such  questions  as 
these  might  be  asked,  and  he  was  on  nettles  all  the 
while  that  George  stood  at  the  window. 

"I  declare,  I  can't  look  into  Ackerman's  face 
without  telling  myself  that  I  was  dreaming ;  that 
I  never  saw  him  near  the  safe,"  said  Walker,  lean- 
ing his  elbows  on  the  desk  and  looking  puzzled. 
"  I  don't  for  the  life  of  me,  see  how  a  guilty  boy  can 
gaze  into  a  fellow's  eyes  as  squarely  as  he  can." 

"  0,  guilt  will  stare  innocence  out  of  countenance 
any  day,"  returned  Murray,  carelessly.  "  Remem- 
ber, now,  that  if  he  makes  another  attempt  on  the 
safe,  we  mu-st  be  on  hand  to  catch  him  ;  if  he  doesn't, 
we  must  keep  the  affair  secret.  It  would  hurt  us, 
you  know,  if  it  should  become  known." 

Murray  took  the  next  day  to  rest  in,  and  to  screw 
up  his  courage  sufficiently  to  enable  him  to  carry 
out  the  next  step  in  his  programme.  Everything 
he  had  done  up  to  this  time,  was  simply  prepara- 
tory ,  and  now,  that  he  had  got  matters  arranged  to 
suit  him,  he  was  ready  to  strike  his  blow.  On  the 
morning  of  the  second  day,  Walker  worked  at  his 
desk  until  nine  o'clock,  and  then,  after  pressing  his 
hand  to  his  forehead  several  times,  he  descended 
from  his  high  stool  and  proceeded  to  shut  up  the 
20 


306  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

office.  He  put  down  and  hooked  the  window,  that 
looked  out  into  the  cabin ;  closed  and  bolted  the 
door  that  opened  out  on  the  guard,  as  well  as  the 
blinds  that-  protected  that  door,  and  went  out  into 
the  cabin,  taking  pains  to  satisfy  himself  that  the 
spring  lock  on  that  door  did  its  full  duty.  Seeing 
his  fellow  clerk  seated  at  one  of  the  tables  reading 
a  newspaper,  he  walked  up  and  held  out  the  key  to 
him.  There  was  but  one  key  between  them,  Walker 
having  managed  to  lose  his  own. 

"I  have  a  bad  headache,"  said  he,  "and  I  am 
going  up  in  Texas  to  take  a  nap.  Call  me  at  noon, 
will  you  ?  Here's  the  key." 

"Keep  it  yourself,"  replied  Murray.  UI  shall 
not  go  near  the  office  until  you  come  down.  There's 
not  much  to  be  done,  and  we  can  straighten  the 
business  up  in  an  hour.  Sleep  all  day  if  you  want 
to.  I'll  call  you  when  I  want  you." 

Half  an  hour  after  this,  Murray  laid  aside  his 
paper,  and  arose  to  his  feet.  He  went  out  of  the 
cabin,  and  about  fifteen  minutes  later  ascended  the 
stairs  that  led  to  the  hurricane-deck.  He  went  into 
Texas,  and,  after  looking  all  around  to  make  sure 
that  there  was  nobody  in  sight,  stepped  cautiously 
into  George  Ackerman's  room,  and  taking  his  pillow 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  307 

off  the  bunk  thrust  something  into  it.  He  flattered 
himself,  that  this  action  was  entirely  unobserved, 
but  such  was  not  the  case.  No  sooner  had  he  gone 
out,  than  a  black  face,  which  was  pressed  close 
against  a  transom  over  the  door  that  gave  entrance 
into  a  stateroom  on  the  other  side  of  the  little  cabin, 
was  withdrawn ;  and  a  moment  later,  the  door  was 
opened,  and  one  of  the  numerous  darkies  employed 
on  the  boat  stepped  out.  He  crept  to  the  door  on 
tip-toe,  glanced  up  and  down  the  deck,  and  after 
making  sure  that  the  chief  clerk  had  gone  below, 
he  ran  into  George's  room,  pulled  down  the  pillow 
and  looked  into  it.  Between  the  pillow  and  the 
case,  he  discovered  two  articles,  one  of  which,  after  a 
moment's  hesitation,  he  put  into  his  pocket.  The 
other  he  left  where  he  found  it ;  and  the  pillow  he 
put  back  in  its  place  on  the  head  of  the  bunk. 

During  the  rest  of  the  day,  the  chief  clerk  could 
scarcely  control  himself,  so  nervous  and  excited  was 
he.  There  was  something  hanging  over  him,  a  try- 
ing ordeal  to  be  gone  through  with,  and  he  knew 
that  he  would  be  in  the  greatest  suspense  until  it 
was  all  over.  If  he  succeeded,  he  would  be  well 
out  of  the  last  scrape  he  ever  meant  to  get  into ;  if 
he  failed — but  that  was  something  he  did  not  tike 


808  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

to  think  about;  and  besides,  he  would  not  allow 
himself  to  believe  that  there  was  any  chance  for 
failure.  His  situation  was  too  desperate  for  that. 
He  must  succeed.  He  did  not  call  the  second  clerk 
at  noon,  and  the  latter  did  not  get  up  until  three 
o'clock.  Murray  saw  him  when  he  came  down,  and 
went  into  the  barber  shop ;  and  as  soon  as  he  could 
do  so,  without  being  seen  by  his  assistant,  he  ran  to 
the  lower  deck  and  went  back  into  the  engineer's 
room.  He  had  been  there  perhaps  a  quarter  of 
an  hour,  when  Walker,  pale  and  agitated,  sud- 
denly made  his  appearance  and  seized  him  by  the 
arm. 

"  Good,  gracious  !"  exclaimed  Murray,  while  the 
engineers  looked  on  in  amazement.  "  What's  the 
matter?" 

"  Say  nothing  to  nobody,  but  come  with  me,'* 
answered  Walker,  in  a  low  tone.  "  You  were  right 
when  you  said  that  he  would  make  another  attempt. 
He's  done  it ;  and  more  than  that,  he  has  been  suc- 
cessful. Didn't  I  tell  you  that  he  might  blunder 
on  to  that  combination  ?  Well,  he  did." 

This  startling  announcement  seemed  to  take  away 
the  chief  clerk's  power  of  speech.  Without  saying 
a  word,  he  allowed  Walker  to  lead  him  to  the 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  309 

boiler-deck  and  around  the  guard  to  the  outer  door 
of  the  office.  The  room  certainly  looked  as  though 
somebody  had  been  there.  The  clothing  in  Mur- 
ray's bunk  was  tumbled  up,  the  high  stool  was  over- 
turned, the  safe  was  wide  open,  the  key  was  gone, 
one  of  the  panes  in  the  glass  door  was  missing,  and 
the  fragments  were  scattered  about  over  the  floor. 
Murray  seemed  to  be  utterly  confounded.  After 
standing  motionless  for  a  moment,  he  rushed  up  to 
the  safe,  jerked  open  a  little  drawer,  and  then  stag- 
gered back  to  his  bunk  and  fell  upon  it. 

"  This  is  the  condition  in  which  I  found  the  room 
when  I  entered  it  a  moment  ago,"  said  Walker, 
taking  possession  of  the  high  stool.  "  I  haven't 
touched  a  thing.  Before  I  went  to  bed  this  morn- 
ing, I  took  particular  pains  to  see  that  everything 
was  secure.  The  key  of  the  safe  was  under  your 
pillow  then,  for  I  saw  it  there." 

"  How  do  you  suppose  he  got  in?"  Murray 
managed  to  ask,  in  a  trembling  voice.  There  was 
no  sham  about  his  agitation,  but  it  was  not  occa- 
sioned by  the  robbery  of  the  safe.  The  ordeal  he 
so  much  dreaded,  was  close  at  hand ;  and  in  spite 
of  the  confidence  he  had  thus  far  felt  in  the  success 
of  his  schemes,  he  feared  failure  and  exposure. 


310  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL  ,    OR. 

"  There  is  but  one  way  he  could  have  got  in," 
answered  the  second  clerk.  "He  slipped  his  fingers 
in  through  the  blinds  and  raised  the  hasp,  smashed 
that  pane  of  glass,  and  put  in  his  hand  and  opened 
the  door.  Then  he  found  the  key  under  your  pil- 
low, stumbled  upon  the  combination,  as  I  was  afraid 
he  would,  and  made  off  with  that  big  envelope  which 
you  put  in  the  drawer  with  three  thousand  dollars 
in  it.  Say,  Murray,  your  plan  didn't  work  worth 
a  cent,  did  it?  We  can  just  consider  ourselves 
discharged." 

"Go  out  and  ask  the  old  man  to  come  in  here," 
said  the  chief  clerk.  "  This  thing  has  got  to  be 
looked  into.  We'll  have  to  tell  him  about  catching 
Ackerman  here,  and  explain  why  we  didn't  report 
the  matter  at  once.  You  must  do  the  talking,  for 
my  wits  have  all  left  me." 

The  second  clerk  was  gone  scarcely  more  than  a 
minute,  for  he  found  the  captain  on  the  boiler-deck. 
When  the  latter  was  conducted  into  the  office  he 
uttered  an  ejaculation  indicative  of  the  profoundest 
amazement,  and  seated  himself  on  the  bunk  by 
Murray's  side.  The  condition  of  the  room,  and 
the  expression  on  the  faces  of  the  two  clerks,  told 
him  what  had  happened  there. 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE. 

"When  was  this  done?"  he  asked,  as  soon  as  he 
found  his  tongue. 

"Sometime  between  nine  and  three  o'clock," 
replied  Walker,  who  then  went  on  to  tell  how  the 
thief  had  forced  an  entrance  into  the  office. 

"  Why,  it  must  be  somebody  who  is  acquainted 
with  your  way  of  doing  business,"  said  the  captain, 
in  deep  perplexity.  "Now,  where  shall  we  look 
for  him  ?  I  have  seen  no  one  loitering  about  here 
except  George  Ackerman." 

"  And  everything  seems  to  point  toward  him  as 
the  guilty  party,"  exclaimed  Murray.  "  I  wish  you 
would  have  his  room  searched  at  once." 

"Bless  my  soul!"  cried  the  captain.  "You 
surely  don't  suspect  him  ?  Well,  well !"  he  added, 
more  in  sorrow  than  anger,  when  he  received  an 
affirmative  nod  from  each  of  the  clerks.  "  That 
beats  me.  I  would  almost  as  soon  suspect  my  own 
son  of  being  a  thief." 

"  I  know  it  is  hard  to  believe,"  answered  Walker, 
"but,  captain,  listen  to  this,  and  tell  us  what  you 
think  of  it." 

The  second  clerk  then  began  and  described  the 
incidents  that  had  happened  in  the  office  two  days 
before ;  repeated  the  conversation  which  he  and 


312  GEORGE   AT    TEE   WHEEL;    OR, 

Murray  had  held  regarding  George's  unsuccessful 
attempt  to  open  the  safe ;  and  explained  the  plans 
they  had  laid  to  catch  him,  if  he  were  bold  enough 
to  make  another  effort  to  steal  the  money.  The 
captain  listened  in  genuine  amazement,  and  after 
asking  a  few  leading  questions,  arose  to  his  feet 
saying : 

"  This  affair  must  be  probed  to  the  bottom  and 
that,  too,  before  we  make  another  landing.  Let  us 
go  and  see  if  we  can  find  Ackerman.  Things  look 
rather  black  against  him,  I  must  confess,  but  I  never 
will  believe  that  he  is  the  one  who  broke  into  this 
office,  until  he  tells  me  so." 

The  captain  led  the  way  to  the  hurricane-deck  and 
into  Texas.  The  boy  pilot,  having  finished  his  nap, 
had  dressed  himself,  and  was  on  the  point  of  leaving 
his  room  as  his  visitors  entered  it.  He  was  about 
to  great  them  pleasantly,  but  the  words  died  away 
on  his  lips  when  he  saw  the  way  they  looked  at 
him. 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  313 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE   KEY   OF  THE   SAFE. 

EORGE,"  said  the  captain,  closing  the  door 
behind  him,  "  I  am  sorry  to  tell  you  that 
Murray's  safe  has  been  robbed,  that  the  key  and 
three  thousand  dollars  in  money  are  missing,  and 
that  you  are  supposed  to  know  more  about  it  than 
anybody  else." 

The  effect  of  these  words  can  be  more  readily 
imagined  than  described.  George  could  scarcely 
believe  that  he  had  heard  aright.  His  e^es  opened 
to  their  widest  extent,  his  under  jaw  dropped  down, 
and  the  expression  of  his  face  changed  like  light- 
ning. Bewilderment,  grief,  incredulity,  almost 
every  emotion  of  which  the  human  mind  is  capable, 
was  reflected  in  his  countenance,  but  he  did  not 
look  guilty.  He  tried  to  speak,  but  he  could  not 
utter  a  sound. 


314  GEORGE   AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  We  have  come  here  to  search  your  room,"  suicl 
the  captain. 

These  words  aroused  George.  The  only  feeling 
that  possessed  him  now  was  one  of  intense  indigna- 
tion ;  but  still  he  spoke  calmly. 

"  Who  dares  accuse  me  of  such  an  act?  "  he  de- 
manded. "  Show  him  to  me.  .  Let  me  stand  face 
to  face  with  him  and  ask  him  his  reasons  for  sus- 
pecting me.  Is  it  you,  Walker?  " 

"  It  is  both  of  us,"  answered  the  second  clerk. 

"  Do  you  suspect  me  because  you  saw  me  trying 
to  open  the  safe  day  before  yesterday  ? "  asked 
George,  still  speaking  very  calmly. 

"  Why,  Ackerman,  any  sane  boy  would  be  will- 
ing to  acknowledge  that  that  was  a  very  suspicious 
circumstance,"  replied  Walker. 

"  Didn't  you  assure  me  that  the  thing  had  been 
explained  to  your  entire  satisfaction  ?  I  tell  you  in 
Murray's  presence,  as  I  told  you  once  before,  that 
he  handed  me  the  key,  gave  me  the  combination 
and  sat  there  on  his  high  stool  and  watched  me 
while  I  was  at  work  on  the  safe.  Murray  is  that  so 
or  not?  " 

The  chief  clerk's  face  was  a  sight  to  behold.  He 
was  white  to  the  lips  and  trembling  so  violently  in 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT   HOUSE.  315 

every  limb  that  he  was  obliged  to  place  his  hand 
against  the  bulkhead  for  support.  He  opened  his 
mouth  as  if  he  were  about  to  speak,  but  no  words 
came  forth. 

"Why  don't  you  deny  it  to  him  as  you  did  to 
me  ?"  demanded  Walker,  while  both  he  and  the 
captain  looked  at  the  chief  clerk  in  astonishment. 

"I  am  too  angry  to  say  anything,"  replied  Mur- 
ray. 

George  was  thunderstruck.  "  Am  I  to  under- 
stand that  you  deny  it?  "  he  cried,  as  soon  as  he 
could  speak. 

"I  do,  most  emphatically,"  answered  Murray, 
whose  courage  began  to  return  to  him  as  soon  as 
he  heard  the  sound  of  his  own  voice.  "  There's 
not  a  word  of  truth  in  it." 

"  Didn't  you  give  me  the  key  and  tell  me  to  see 
if  I  could  open  the  safe  ?  "  repeated  George,  who 
wondered  if  he  were  awake  or  dreaming. 

"  I  never  did,  People  who  handle  money  are 
not  in  the  habit" — 

He  never  finished  the  sentence.  All  of  a  sudden 
George's  right  arm  shot  out  with  the  force  of  a 
thunderbolt,  Murray's  head  came  in  violent  contact 
with  the  door,  splitting  one  of  the  panels,  and  Mur- 


316  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

ray  himself  sank  helplessly  to  the  floor.  The 
young  pilot,  who  now  began  to  have  a  very  dim 
idea  that  he  was  the  victim  of  a  deeply  laid  plot, 
was  thoroughly  aroused,  and  he  would  have  handled 
the  schemer  roughly  indeed  if  the  captain  and 
Walker  had  not  caught  him  in  their  arms  and  held 
him  fast. 

"  What  a  desperate  wretch  he  is,"  thought  the 
second  clerk,  who  did  not  know  which  to  wonder  at 
the  more — the  cool  assurance  of  the  guilty  boy,  or 
the  power  of  the  arm  that  had  so  quickly  and 
easily  made  a  "spread  eagle"  of  his  superior. 
"He  looks  as  innocent  as  a  lamb." 

"There's  a  bug  under  that  chip,  and  it's  a  big 
one,  too,"  thought  the  captain,  by  wrhich  he  meant 
to  inform  himself  that  there  was  something  back  of 
all  this  that  needed  looking  into.  "  No  guilty  boy 
ever  looked  and  acted  like  Ackerman.  I  shall  not 
allow  any  more  violence,"  said  he  sternly.  "  I 
promise  you  that  the  thing  shall  be  thoroughly  in- 
vestigated and  the  blame  placed  right  where  it 
belongs ;  but  if  you  don't  behave  yourself  I'll  put 
the  handcuffs  on  you." 

>CA11  right,  sir,"  said  George,  in  reply.  "  The 
sooner  you  get  to  the  bottom  of  it  the  better  you 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  317 

will  suit  me.  You  said  something  about  searching 
my  room.  There  are  my  keys.  Go  through  my 
trunk  thoroughly,  and  if  you  can  find  anything  in 
it  or  in  my  room«to  condemn  me,  I  will  acknowl- 
edge myself  guilty." 

The  captain  took  the  keys,  inserted  one  of  them 
•into  the  lock  of  George's  trunk  and  hesitated.  He 
knew  then,  as  well  as  he  knew  it  afterward,  that  he 
was  on  the  wrong  track.  The  second  clerk  being 
of  a  different  opinion,  began  an  attack  upon 
George's  bunk.  Picking  up  the  pillow,  he  caught 
the  case  by  the  corners  and  gave  it  a  shake,  when 
something  that  gave  out  a  metallic  sound  fell  to  the 
floor.  Walker  caught  it  up  and  held  it  aloft  with 
an  exclamation  of  triumph.  It  was  the  key  of  the 
safe.  The  young  pilot  fairly  gasped  for  breath 
when  he  saw  it.  He  gave  Murray  one  look  and 
seated  himself  on  Mr.  Black's  trunk. 

"  George,  George  !"  exclaimed  the  old  captain, 
sorrowfully.  "  How  do  you  account  for  that?" 

"I  can't  account  for  it,  sir,"  replied  the  boy; 
"  I  never  put  that  key  there." 

The  captain  placed  his  hands  behind  his  back,  and 
looking  down  into  the  clear,  honest  eyes  that  were 
gazing  straight  into  his  own,  told  himself  that  the 


318  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OK, 

boy  was  no  more  a  thief  than  he  was.     "  Do  you 
know  where  the  money  is  ?"  he  asked. 

"  I  do  not,  sir  ;  I  have  never  seen  it.  The  one 
who  put  that  key  there  can  tell  you  where  he  put 
the  money.  You  have  made  a  good  beginning,  and 
you  had  better  go  on  with  your  search." 

"  Pull  off  the  pillow-case,  Waiker,"  said  Murray,* 
who  had  backed  up  into  one  corner  of  the  room,  and 
stood  holding  his  handkerchief  over  his  wounded 
eye.     "  I  don't  see  why  that  money  didn't  fall  out," 
he  added,  mentally. 

The  second  clerk  acted  upon  the  suggestion,  but 
found  nothing.  Murray,  who  closely  watched  all 
his  movements,  grew  a  shade  whiter  than  ever,  and 
his  heart  sank  within  him.  This  was  the  second 
hitch  in  his  programme.  The  first  was  the  cap- 
tain's unshaken  faith  in  George's  innocence.  That 
was  something  that  Murray  had  not  look  for,  and 
perhaps  it  was  one  reason  why  he  did  not  play  his 
part  better. 

"  It  was  a  well-laid  scheme,  and  I  cannot  yet  see 
where  I  made  a  mistake  in  it,"  soliloquized  the 
chief  clerk,  whose  suspense  and  alarm  were  so  great 
that  he  scarcely  knew  how  he  was  acting.  He  was 
almost  ready  to  thank  George  for  giving  him  that 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  319 

blow,  because  it  furnished  him  with  an  excuse  for 
keeping  his  face  covered.  "  I  can't  imagine  where 
that  money  has  gone.  I  put  three  hundred  dollars 
in  that  pillow-case  at  the  same  time  I  put  the  key 
there,  and  how  it  has  disappeared  so  suddenly  beats 
me.  If  anybody  saw  me  put  it  there " 

Murray  could  not  bear  to  dwell  upon  this  thought. 
It  suggested  too  many  dreadful  things  to  him. 

As  he  was  in  duty  bound  to  do,  the  captain  made 
a  searching  investigation,  but  the  money  he  was 
looking  for  could  not  be  found.  He  questioned 
George  very  closely,  but  could  learn  nothing  from 
him,  for  the  simple  reason  that  he  did  not  know 
anything  about  it. 

"  This  is  a  sad  aifair,"  said  the  captain,  at 
length,  "and  the  law  will  have  to  look' into  it. 
George,  I  have  known  you  but  a  short  time,  but 
somehow  I  have  great  confidence  in  you." 

The  accents  of  kindness  touched  the  boy's  heart, 
and  his  eyes  filled  with  tears.  "  Thank  you,  sir," 
said  he.  heartily.  u  I  assure  you  that  I  shall  never 
abuse  that  confidence." 

"  Consequently,  if  you  will  promise  that  you  will 
not  leave  the  boat  until  we  reach  St.  Louis,  I  shall 
put  no  restraint  upon  you,"  added  the  captain. 


320  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  I  promise ;  I  am  as  anxious  to  have  this  matter 
looked  into  as  you  are ;  more  so,  for  I  have  more  at 
stake." 

"  Very  well.  Now,  gentlemen,  we  will  go  below," 
said  the  captain,  addressing  himself  to  the  clerks. 
"I  shall  consult  with  some  of  the  officers,  and  be 
governed  by  their  advice." 

George's  visitors  went  out,  and  the  boy  set  to 
work  to  repack  his  trunk  and  make  up  the  bunks. 
When  this  was  done,  he  walked  leisurely  up  the 
steps  that  led  into  the  pilot-house,  and  found  the 
captain  and  the  chief  engineer  in  consultation  with 
Mr.  Black  and  his  partner. 

"  George !"  exclaimed  Mr.  Black,  seizing  the 
boy's  hand  in  both  his  own  and  shaking  it  heartily  ; 
"  these  fellows  mean  to  ruin  you,  don't  they  ?" 

"I  am  afraid  they  have  done  it  already,"  re- 
plied George,  with  a  sickly  smile. 

"Not  by  a  long  shot,"  said  the  other  pilot,  who 
stood  at  the  wheel.  "  I  know  that  the  evidence  is 
against  you,  but  your  friends  have  not  all  turned 
their  backs  on  you.  Has  Murray  any  reason  to 
be  down  on  you?" 

"Well,  I'll  tell  you  something,  and  then  you 
can  answer  that  question  for  yourself,"  answered 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  321 

George,  who  then  went  on  to  describe  how  Mur- 
ray had  acted  when  he  saw  him  pick  up  Mr. 
Black's  lost  pocket-book.  His  auditors  opened 
their  eyes  and  looked  significantly  at  one  another 
when  George  explained  how  it  came  that  he  had 
been  so  intimate  with  the  chief  clerk  ever  since 
the  Telegraph  left  St.  Louis. 

"It's  a  put  up  job,"  said  the  chief  engineer, 
decidedly.  u  I  heard  that  Murray  lost  a  good  deal 
of  Clayton's  money  at  cards  when  he  came  up  on 
the  Quitman  a  few  months  ago,  and  that  Clayton 
discharged  him  for  it.  That  shows  that  he  is  not 
honest.  You  asked  my  advice,  captain ;  I  should 
say,  let  the  matter  rest  until  we  reach  the  city, 
and  then  set  the  law  at  work.  I'll  promise  that 
George  will  not  run  away,"  added  the  engineer, 
poking  the  young  pilot  in  the  ribs  with  his  finger. 
"  If  you  want  to  watch  anybody,  watch  Bill  Mur- 
ray." 

This  was  the  captain's  idea  too,  and  after  some 
discussion  it  was  decided  that  the  engineer's  advice 
should  be  followed. 

Bad  news  flies  like  wild-fire,  and  it  was  not  long 
before  it  was  known  all  over  the  boat  that  George 

Ackerman  had  broken   into  the  office  and  robbed 
21 


322  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OK, 

the  safe  of  three  thousand  dollars,  an  1  that  the 
captain  had  virtually  placed  him  under  arrest. 
The  chief  clerk,  who  was  obliged  to  explain  how 
he  got  that  black  eye,  industriously  circulated  this 
story.  He  saw  the  necessity  of  creating  a  popular 
opinion  in  his  favor,  for  he  was  literally  alone. 
All  the  officers  who  heard  his  version  of  the  affair 
looked  incredulous,  and  even  Walker  acted  as 
though  he  had  his  suspicions.  Murray,  of  course, 
had  known  all  along  that  when  the  denouement 
came  a  rigid  investigation  would  be  held,  but  he 
relied  upon  the  overwhelming  evidence  he  could 
produce  to ,  crush  George  and  turn  all  his  friends 
against  him.  But  the  young  pilot  positively  re- 
fused to  be  crushed.  Feeling  strong  in  his  inno- 
cence he  was  determined  to  make  a  fight  of  it, 
while  his  friends — and  it  looked  now  as  though 
every  man  on  board  the  boat  was  his  friend — 
rallied  to  his  support. 

"  There's  something  about  this  business  that 
doesn't  look  just  right  to  me,"  said  Walker,  as  he 
and  Murray  went  back  to  the  office  and  began  to 
put  things  in  order  there ;  "  but  I  can't  for  the 
life  of  me  tell  what  it  is.  I  can  tell  you  this  much, 
however,  if  there  had  been  a  stranger  with  us  when 


LIFE   IN    HIE   PILOT-HOUSE.  823 

we  went  up  to  Ackerman's  room,  he  would  have 
declared  that  you  looked  and  acted  more  like  a 
guilty  man  than  George  did." 

"Walker,"  exclaimed  the  chief  clerk,  sharply. 
"  Do  you  mean  to  insult  me?" 

"No;  I  don't.  I  mean  to  tell  you  that  I 
didn't  believe  Ackerraan  knows  any  more  about 
this  robbery  than — than  I  do."  He  was  about  to 
say  "  than  you  do." 

"Who  did  it,  then.  Why,  man  alive,  just  look 
at  the  evidence." 

"  I  know.  But  when  that  evidence  comes  to 
be  sifted  by  some  sharp  lawyer" — Walker  stopped 
there,  and  left  his  companion  to  finish  the  sentence 
for  himself.  "  Mark  my  words,"  he  added,  a  mo- 
ment -later.  "We're  going  to  see  lively  times 
before  this  thing  is  settled." 

"  I  begin  to  think  so,  too,"  thought  Murray. 
"  I  am  afraid  I  have  jumped  out  of  the  frying-pan 
into  the  fire.  I  wonder  if  I  hadn't  better  take  what 
is  left  of  that  three  thousand,  and  step  off  the  boat 
when  we  reach  Memphis  without  saying  a  word  to 
anybody?  That's  an  idea  worth  thinking  about." 

While  this  storm  was  raging  about  the  young 
pilot's  devoted  head,  another  was  brewing  which 


324  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

proved  to  be  as  dangerous  to  human  life  as  this  one 
was  to  George's  reputation.  A  thick,  black  cloud, 
which  had  been  hanging  in  the  horizon  all  the  fore- 
noon, now  began  rising  rapidly,  and  in  ten  minuter 
more  it  had  covered  the  whole  heavens.  The  rain 
fell  in  torrents  and  the  wind  blew  a  gale.  The 
Telegraph  was  within  whistling  distance  of  Helena 
when  the  storm  struck  her.  For  a  while  it  seemed 
as  if  the  wind  would  sweep  her  decks  clear  of  every- 
thing ;  or,  failing  that,  drive  her  back  down  the 
river ;  but  she  struggled  successfully  against  it,  and 
finally  came  abreast  of  the  town.  It  was  a  matter 
of  no  little  difficulty  to  come  alongside  the  wharf- 
boat  without  smashing  something,  but  under  the 
skilful  management  of  Mr.  Black  and  his  partner, 
the  landing  was  made,  and  after  the  engineers  had 
been  instructed  to  "  keep  her  working  ahead  pretty 
strong,"  so  that  the  wind  would  not  blow  both 
steamer  and  wharf-boat  away  from  the  bank,  the 
occupants  of  the  pilot-house  sat  down  on  the  bench 
to  talk  over  the  events  of  the  day. 

While  they  were  thus  engaged,  the  watchman 
suddenly  made  his  appearance,  bringing  with  him  a 
pale,  scared  face,  and  said  something  to  the  captain, 
who  stood  in  his  usual  place  near  the  bell.  The 


.GEORGE   AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR,  325 

latter  at  once  hurried  below,  while  the  watchman 
came  into  the  pilot-house  to  report  t'nat  one  of  the 
cabin  boys  had  been  "pinched"  between  a  fender 
and  a  stanchion  and  very  severely  injured.  The 
way  it  happened  was  this :  When  the  Telegraph 
came  abreast  of  the  wharf-boat,  the  wind  caught 
her  and  swung  her  toward  it  with  great  violence. 
One  of  the  mates,  seeing  the  danger,  called  out, 
"  Stand  by,  everybody,  to  fend  off !  Drop  those 
fenders  overboard !  Everybody,  I  said,"  he  added, 
shaking  his  fist  at  a  negro,  who  was  passing  along 
the  deck  from  the  engine-room  with  a  pail  of  hot 
water  in  his  hand. 

Now,  although  the  negro  knew  all  about  the 
duties  of  a  boy  who  was  employed  in  the  cabin,  he 
knew  nothing  about  a  deck  hand's  business.  Set- 
ting down  his  pail,  he  rushed  to  the  side  in  readiness 
to  assist  in  pushing  the  Telegraph  away  from  the 
wharf-boat ;  but  it  so  happened  that  he  placed  him- 
self close  to  a  stanchion,  at  the  top  of  which  was 
fastened  a  fender — a  heavy  piece  of  timber  long 
enough  to  reach  from  the  boiler- deck  to  the  water. 
No  sooner  had  he  taken  up  his  position,  than  two 
of  the  deck-hands  seized  the  fender  attached  to  that 
stanchion  and  dropped  it  overboard.  It  swung 


826  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

down  to  its  place,  and  striking  the  darkey  with 
fearful  foice,  pinned  him  fast.  He  was  released  as 
soon  as  the  Telegraph  swung  away  from  the  wharf- 
boat,  carried  off  in  a  fainting  condition,  and  laid 
upon  one  of  the  bunks  in  the  deck  hands'  room, 
while  the  watchman  was  dispatched  to  acquaint  the 
captain  with  the  accident,  and  to  inquire  if  there 
was  a  surgeon  among  the  passengers.  This  was  the 
substance  of  the  story  to  which  George  and  his 
companions  listened.  None  of  them  had  much 
to  say  about  it,  for  accidents  of  all  kinds  were  of 
too  frequent  occurrence  to  attract  any  especial  notice 
from  men  of  their  calling.  They  could  not  foresee 
the  results  that  were  to  grow  out  of  this  one. 

The  storm  abated  about  the  time  the  Telegraph 
was  ready  to  continue  on  her  way  up  the  river,  and 
George  took  Mr.  Kelsey's  place  at  the  wheel.  As 
soon  as  the  boat  was  fairly  under  way  the  captain 
turned  toward  the  pilot-house,  when  the  doctor,  who 
had  been  summoned  to  attend  to  the  injured  man, 
came  up  the  stairs.  "  I  was  looking  for  you,  cap- 
tain," said  he.  "  That  man  of  yours  is  badly  hurt 
and  ought  to  go  to  the  hospital." 

"  All  right,"  said  the  captain.  "  I'll  put  him 
ashore  at  Memphis.  I  never  heard  of  so  careless  an 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  327 

act  but  once  before.  I  knew  a  deck  hand  to  put 
his  head  between  a  stanchion  and  a  fender,  and  his 
neck  was  broken  short  oft'.  It  is  a  wonder  to  me 
that  this  man  escaped  with  his  life." 

"  We  physicians  while  acting  in  our  professional 
capacity,  sometimes  come  into  possession  of  very 
important  secrets.  This  -man,  believing  that  he  is 
going  to  die,  has  made  a  confession,  and  I — shall  I 
tell  it  to  you  here  ?" 

"  Yes,  speak  freely,"  said  the  captain,  who  won- 
dered if  the  steward  had  missed  any  of  the  silver 
belonging  to  the  boat.  "  There  is  no  one  to  over- 
hear you." 

"  I  understand  that  there  has  been  a  robbery 
committed  on  board  this  boat,"  continued  the  doctor, 
whereupon  the  captain  began  to  open  his  eyes ; 
"but  I  don't  know  whether  or  not  this  man's  con- 
fession will  throw  any  light  upon  it.  He  said  that 
he  was  at  work  scrubbing  out  one  of  the  rooms  in 
Texas,  wherever  that  is — " 

"  There  it  is,"  said  the  captain,  pointing  to  the 
little  cabin  under  the  pilot-house.  "  The  officers 
sleep  there." 

"0!"  exclaimed  the  doctor.  "Well,  while  he  was 
at  work  in  that  state-room  he  saw  the  chief  clerk  of 


328  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

the  boat  go  into  Ackerman's  room,  take  a  pillow  off 
his  bunk,  and  put  some  money  and  a  key  into  it. 
Here  is  the  money,  and  I — my  goodness,  what's  the 
ruitter?" 

When  the  doctor  said  "here's  the  money,"  he 
dreAv  out  of  his  pocket  a  package  wrapped  up  in 
something  that  looked  like  a  piece  of  brown  paper. 
As  soon  as  the  captain's  eyes  rested  upon  it,  he 
snatched  it  from  the  hands  of  the  astonished  phy- 
sician and  opened  it.  The  brown  paper  proved  to  be 
a  large  envelope,  and  its  contents  were  greenbacks 
The  envelope  bore  Murray's  name  and  address,  and 
in  the  upper  left  hand  corner  were  the  figures 
$300. 

"Pardon  my  rudeness,  doctor,"  said  the  captain, 
"but  you  don't  know  how  impatient  I  was  to  see 
what  was  in  that  roll.  This  is  a  matter  of  import- 
ance, the  first  thing  you  know,  and  you  have 
completely  unravelled  something  that  was  to  me  a 
deep  mystery.  Go  on,  please." 

"Well,"  said  the  doctor,  "when  Murray  went 
out,  the  negro  stepped  into  the  pilot's  room  and 
stole  the  money.  That's  all  there  is  of  it.  I  don't 
pretend  to  know  why  the  clerk  put  the  money  into 
the  pillow  instead  of  placing  it  in  the  pilot's  hands, 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  329 

and  neither  do  I  know  what  the  key  was  placed 
there  for." 

"  I  know  all  about  it,"  explained  the  captain. 
"  If  you  will  excuse  me  now  1  will  see  you  later." 

The  captain  ran  down  to  the  boiler-deck  and 
walked  around  to  the  outer  door  of  the  office,  which 
he  entered  without  ceremony.  Both  the  clerks 
were  there — Walker  perched  upon  a  high  stool  and 
Murray  lying  in  his  bunk  with  his  handkerchief 
over  his  wounded  eye.  They  both  stared  at  the 
captain  in  great  surprise.  They  had  never  seen 
such  an  expression  on  his  face  before. 

"  Murray,"  said  the  captain,  without  any  pre- 
liminary remarks,  "you  might  just  as  well  own 
up.  The  whole  thing  is  out  on  you  !" 

Murray  raised  himself  in  his  bunk  and  tried  to 
look  astonished,  while  Walker  leaned  his  elbows 
on  the  desk  and  nodded  his  head,  as  if  to  say  that 
he  had  been  expecting  something  of  this  kind. 

"  The  man  who  saw  you  put  the  money  and  the 
safe-key  into  Ackerman's  pillow,  in  your  endeavor 
to  fasten  this  robbery  upon  him,  has  made  a  con- 
fession," continued  the  captain.  UI  don't  wonder 
that  you  tremble;  I  should  if  I  were  in  your 
place.  You  can  save  yourself  trouble  by  handing 


330  GEORGE    AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

out  the  rest  of  that  three  thousand.  You've  got 
it,  and  I  know  it.  If  you  will  do  that,  I  think  I 
can  safely  promise  that  Ackerman  will  let  the 
thing  drop  right  here,  and  be  content  to  leave 
you  to  the  punishment  of  your  own  guilty  con- 
science " 

The  chief  clerk  could  not  say  a  word  in  reply. 
The  rapidity  with  which  the  young  pilot's  vindica- 
tion had  followed  upon  the  heels  of  his  accusation 
bewildered  him.  The  mysterious  disappearance  of 
the  money  which  he  had  so  confidently  expected 
that  Walker  would  find  in  George's  pillow  had 
caused  him  the  most  intense  alarm,  for  it  told  him 
that  somebody  had  discovered  his  secret ;  that 
somebody  had  confessed,  and  it  was  all  over  with 
him. 

"  There's  the  money  you  put  into  George's  pil- 
low when  you  put  the  safe-key  there,"  said  the 
captain,  handing  the  envelope  and  the  bills  over 
to  Walker,  "and  I  tell  you  that  you  will  have  a 
time  of  it  if  you  don't  refund  the  balance.  Now, 
do  as  you  please." 

Murray  sank  back  upon  his  bunk,  covered  his 
face  with  his  handkerchief,  and  without  saying  a 
word  put  his  hand  into  his  pocket  and  drew  out  a 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  331 

roll  of  greenbacks.  Walker  took  it  and  counted  it 
while  the  captain  looked  on.  There  were  twenty- 
seven  hundred  dollars  in  it,  and  that  amount,  added 
to  the  three  hundred  dollars  which  the  injured 
darkey  had  surrendered  to  the  doctor,  made  up 
the  three  thousand  dollars  that  George  had  been 
accused  of  stealing. 

"  That's  all  right.  Where's  the  key  of  the  safe  ? 
Now,"  said  the  captain,  as  Murray  produced  it, 
"  vacate  this  office  at  once,  and  leave  Walker  in 
charge.  Don't  come  near  it  again." 

The  captain  left  the  office  and  went  up  to  the 
pilot-house.  George  and  the  two  pilots  were  there, 
and  so  was  the  chief  engineer,  who  was  laying  out 
some  very  elaborate  plans  for  establishing  George's 
innocence,  which  were  to  be  set  on  foot  as  soon 
as  they  reached  St.  Louis.  When  the  captain 
entered,  he  was  saying, 

"We'll  put  a  detective  after  him,  and  find  out 
everything  he  has  done  since  Clayton  discharged 
him.  Don't  you  think  that  would  be  the  best  way, 
skipper?" 

"  There  is  no  need  of  it,"  was  the  reply.  "I 
know  pretty  nearly  what  he  has  done  since  he  has 
been  on  board  this  boat,  and  that's  enough  for  me. 


332  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

Don't  look  so  down-hearted,  George.  I  told  you 
that  the  blame  should  be  placed  right  where  it 
belonged,  and  I  have  kept  my  word.  Murray  is 
the  guilty  man  !" 

Without  paying  any  attention  to  the  exclama- 
tions uttered  by  his  auditors,  the  captain  gave  a 
hurried  account  of  all  the  incidents  that  had  hap- 
pened since  the  Telegraph  left  Helena,  and  the 
story,  while  it  cleared  George,  confirmed  the  sus- 
picions that  every  one  of  them  had  entertained 
from  the  moment  it  became  known  that  he  was 
suspected  of  robbing  the  safe.  The  young  pilot 

* 

was  almost  overwhelmed  by  the  congratulations 
he  received,  and  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  add  that 
he  cherished  the  strongest  feelings  of  gratitude 
toward  the  men  who  had  stood  by  him  and  be- 
lieved in  him  when  everything  seemed  to  point  to 
him  as  the  guilty  one. 

George  never  saw  Murray  after  that.  In  fact, 
nobody  seemed  to  think  of  him,  until  the  boat  had 
left  Cairo  and  was  well  on  her  way  toward  St.  Louis, 
and  then  some  one  asked,  merely  out  of  curiosity, 
where  he  kept  himself  ever  since  the  captain  ordered 
him  out  of  the  office.  Even  Walker  couldn't  tell. 
At  Murray's  request  he  had  assigned  him  to  a  state- 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT   HOUSE. 

room,  and  he  had  not  seen  him  since  he  went  into 
it.  An  examination  showed,  that  the  stateroom  was 
empty,  although  the  lower  bunk  looked  as  though 
it  had  been  occupied. 

"  He's  all  right ;  you  may  depend  upon  it,  Acker- 
man,"  said  Walker,  who  had  lost  no  time  in  making 
things  straight  with  George.  "  I  know,  as  well  as 
I  want  to  know  it,  that  he  left  the  boat  at  Memphis. 
As  we  got  there  in  the  night,  it  was  no  trouble  at 
all  for  him  to  step  off  without  being  seen  by  any- 
body." 

The  clerk  was  right.  That  was  just  the  way  that 
Mr.  Murray  had  taken,  to  avoid  the  troubles  that 
would  certainly  have  befallen  him  if  he  had  gone  on 
to  St.  Louis.  George  never  heard  of  him  again,  as 
long  as  he  stayed  on  the  river. 

Mr.  Black  was  not  out  of  a  ujob  "  more  than  two 
days  after  he  reached  St.  Louis.  Another  of  Mr. 
Richardson's  boats,  the  Benefit,  was  about  to  start 
for  New  Orleans,  and  he  was  one  of  the  pilots  who 
was  engaged  to  take  her  down  and  bring  her  back. 
The  other  was  Mr.  Scanlan,  who  afterward  went 
down  the  river  with  Mr.  Black  and  George  on  the 
ill-fated  Sam  Kendall.  Mr.  Scanlan  spent  all  his 
time  ashore,  Mr.  Black  stayed  at  home  with 


334  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

his  family,  and  George  was  left  to  take  the  boat  up 
to  the  coal-fleet.  He  could  not  help  thinking  of 
the  company  he  had  the  last  time  he  went  up  there,, 
and  wondered  where  Tony  was  now,  and  whether 
he  was  not  sorry  he  had  ever  run  away  from  home ; 
for  by  this  time  it  had  become  known,  that  he  had 
not  been  killed  by  Mr.  Yandegriff's  negroes,  as 
everybody  at  first  believed.  He  had  been  heard 
from  at  Cairo.  From  that  city  he  had  written  to 
Mr.  Vandegriff,  that  he  was  about  to  strike  out  for 
himself;  and  he  had  sent  that  gentleman  all  his 
money,  with  the  exception  of  fifty  dollars,  which  he 
had  kept  out  for  his  own  use.  Unfortunately  the 
report  had  became  raised  abroad,  that  Tony  had 
stolen  those  fifty  dollars ;  but  that  was  something 
that  George  could  not  believe.  It  was  not  like 
Tony. 

The  Benefit  arrived  at  New  Orleans  late  one 
afternoon,  and  when  George  had  eaten  his  supper, 
he  strolled  out  to  take  a  look  about  the  levee.  When 
he  came  back  to  his  boat  he  did  not  go  aboard,  but 
seated  himself  on  a  bale  of  cotton  to  watch  a  gulf 
steamer  that  was  getting  under  way.  Whije  he 
looked  at  her,  he  thought  of  Tony  Richardson. 

"  I  suppose  that  foolish  fellow  is  on  deep  water 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  335 

by  this  time,  and  supping  sorrow  with  a  big  spoon," 
soliloquized  George,  as  he  put  his  hands  under  his 
legs  and  kicked  his  heels  against  the  bale  of  cotton. 
"  I  don't  know  anything  about  a  sailor's  life,  but 
from  what  I  have  heard  and  read  of  it,  I  should  say 
it  was  the  very  life  for  which  Tony  is  the  most 
unfitted.  There  goes  a  sailor  now.  I  wish  Tony 
could  have  seen  him  before  he  ran  away." 

The  subject  of  these  thoughts  was  a  young  fellow 
who  just  then  came  sauntering  along  with  his 
hands  in  his  pockets.  His  face  was  covered  with 
coal-dust,  his  clothing  was  very  dirty  and  ragged, 
and  his  shoes  were  almost  ready  to  drop  from  his 
feet.  When  he  came  opposite  to  the  place  where 
George  was  sitting,  he  caught  sight  of  the  strip  of 
canvas  which  was  stretched  around  the  railing 
of  the  Benefit's  hurricane  deck,  bearing  the  words, 
"  For  St.  Louis."  He  looked  at  it  for  a  moment, 
and  then  walked  toward  the  gang-plank,  still  keep- 
ing his  gaze  directed  toward  the  strip  of  canvas, 
which  presently  came  within  range  of  the  steamer's 
name  on  the  pilot-house.  When  the  sailor  saw 
that,  he  faced  about  at  once  and  started  up  the 
levee  again,  this  time  walking  pretty  rapidly ;  but 


336  GEORGE   AT   THE  WHEEL  ;    OR, 

before  he  had  made  many  steps,  he  felt  George 
Ackerman's  grasp  upon  his  arm. 

"  Tony !"  exclaimed  the  young  pilot,  in  great 
amazement. 

The  sailor  turned  his  face  toward  George,  but  it 
was  so  completely  covered  with  coal-dust  that 
nobody  could  tell  what  the  expression  of  it  was. 
He  looked  at  the  trim,  neatly-dressed  boy  before 
him,  then  his  eyes  fell  down  upon  his  own  dilapi- 
dated garments,  and  he  made  an  effort  to  pull 
himself  away.  "You  have  made  a  mistake,"  said 
he.  "  That  doesn't  happen  to  be  my  name." 

"  Tony,  Tony,  that  won't  do,"  returned  George, 
tightening  his  grasp  on  the  sailor's  arm.  "I  was 
a  little  uncertain  at  first,  but  I  am  not  now.  I 
know  your  voice.  Aha!  I  thought  so,"  said 
George  to  himself,  as  the  boy  covered  his  face  with 
his  hands  and  sobbed  violently. 

It  was  Tony,  sure  enough.  George  put  his  arm 
around  him  and  led  him  back  to  the  cotton-bale 
f :om  which  he  had  just  arisen.  He  lifted  Tony 
upon  it  bodily,  and  seated  himself  by  his  side. 

"No  use  of  shedding  the  briny  over  it,"  said 
George,  who  was  delighted  to  see  his  friend  once 
more.  "You're  going  home  now,  are  you  not?" 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  337 

"Yes,  I  am,"  replied  Tony,  between  his  sobs. 
"  And  if  I  ever  get  there,  I'll  stay.  That  is,  I'd 
like  to  stay,  for  I  have  had  quite  enough  of  salt 
water,  but  I  don't  know  whether  the  folks  will 
want  me  there  or  not." 

"I  do,"  said  George,  cheerfully.  "They'll  be 
overjoyed  to  see  you  again,  and  you'll  get  there 
just  as  soon  as  the  Benefit  can  take  you." 

"  Oh,  I  can't  go  on  her,"  exclaimed  Tony. 
"  She  is  my  father's  boat,  and  almost  all  the 
officers  know  me.  I  was  going  aboard  of  her  to 
see  if  I  could  ship  as  deck-hand  when  I  noticed 
the  name  on  her  pilot-house." 

"You'd  look  nice,  shipping  as  deck-hand, 
wouldn't  you,  now?"  said  George.  "You  shan't 
do  it  while  I  have  a  bunk.  What  difference  does 
it  make  to  you  if  the  officers  do  know  you  ?  You'll 
have  to  meet  people  who  know  all  about  it,  and 
you  might  as  well  begin  one  time  as  another. 
Now,  where  have  you  been  and  what  have  you 
been  doing  since  I  last  saw  you  ?" 

There  was  no  need  that  Tony  should  indulge 
in  flights  of  fancy  or  use  glowing  language  to  con- 
vince George  that  he  had  had  an  exceedingly  hard 

time  of  it  during  his  short  career  as  a  sailor.     He 
22 


•338  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OR, 

had  hardly  began  his  story  before  the  young  pilot 
interrupted  him  with — 

;t  You  have  lifted  a  heavy  load  from  my  mind. 
I  was  informed  that  you  had  stolen  that  money 
of  Mr.  Vandegriff. 

"I  didn't,"  said  Tony,  stoutly.  "I  earned  it 
fairly.  I'll  go  to  Mr.  Vandegriff  with  you  as  soon 
as  we  reach  St.  Louis  and  ask  him  if  I  didn't." 

"  There  is  no  need  of  that,"  answered  George. 
"  I  believe  you.  Go  on." 

u  The  hardest  part  of  my  experience,"  said 
Tony,  after  he  had  described  his  life  on  the  Prince- 
ton and  told  how  he  had  deserted  from  her,"  was 
on  board  the  City  of  Baltimore ;  but  fortunately 
the  voyage  was  not  a  long  one,  and  I  was  able  to 
live  through  it.  I  suppose  I  was  a  rough-looking 
fellow,  but  that  was  no  reason  why  the  mates 
should  kick  me  and  knock  me  about  as  they  did. 
I  never  showed  myself  until  the  ship  was  well 
out  to  sea,  and  then  I  wished  I  hadn't  showed 
myself  at  all.  The  jawing  I  got  when  they  found 
that  I  was  a  stowaway  was  fearful,  but  it  was 
nothing  to  the  abuse  that  followed.  I  was  put  to 
heaving  coal  and  kept  at  it  until  I  was  ready 
to  drop.  The  men  who  worked  with  me  were 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  339 

changed  every  few  hours,  but  they  wouldn't  let 
me  stop  at  all.  I  feel  as  if  I  could  sleep  for  a 
week." 

By  the  time  Tony  had  finished  his  story  it  was 
dark,  and  George  took  him  aboard  the  Benefit 
and  up  to  his  room  in  Texas.  There  were  plenty 
of  towels,  soap  and  water  handy,  and  when  George 
had  laid  out  a  suit  of  his  own  clothing  for  Tony 
to  put  on,  he  left  him  to  himself.  An  hour  later 
he  went  back  to  his  room  and  found  that  the 
runaway  had  taken  possession  of  his  bunk  and 
was  sleeping  soundly.  He  looked  more  like  the 
Tony  of  old  now  that  he  had  got  rid  of  the  coal- 
dust  and  put  on  a  suit  of  better  clothes,  but  his 
face  was  thin  and  pinched  and  his  eyes  were  still 
badly  discolored. 

Great  was  the  astonishment  among  the  officers 
of  the  Benefit  when  it  became  known  that  Tony 
Richardson  had  turned  up  safe,  if  not  sound,  and 
that  he  was  on  his  way  home.  Of  course  they 
were  all  glad  to  see  him,  and  praised  him  without 
stint  for  the  courage  he  had  exhibited  during  the 
battle  on  the  barge;  but  they  never  said  a  word 
to  him  about  running  away  from  home.  They 
did  not  talk  or  act  as  though  they  knew  anything 


340  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

about  it.  When  the  Benefit  reached  St.  Louis 
he  went,  straight  to  the  depot  to  take  the  first 
train  for  Kirk  wood,  George  furnishing  the  money 
to  pay  his  fare,  and  promising  to  run  up  to  the 
office  and  let  his  father  know  of  his  arrival. 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  341 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

CONCLUSION. 

rflHE  next  half  year  of  George  Acker-man's  life 
passed  without  the  occurrence  of  any  event 
that  is  worthy  of  notice.  The  longer  he  followed  the 
river  the  better  he  liked  it.  When  he  was  not 
asleep  or  at  his  meals  he  was  always  to  be  found 
in  the  pilot-house,  no  matter  whether  it  was  his 
turn  to  stand  watch  or  not.  He  learned  rapidly, 
and  it  was  no  unusual  thing  for  him  to  steer  for 
hours  together  without  a  word  of  instruction  or 
advice.  His  memory  was  very  retentive,  and  if  Mr. 
Black,  when  questioned  by  a  brother  pilot,  forgot 
just  how  much  water  he  found  on  a  certain  bar,  or 
in  a  particular  bend  during  his  last  trip,  he  had  but 
to  call  upon  George  for  the  information,  and  he 
always  got  it. 


312  GEORGE   AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

When  everything  was  going  so  smoothly  with 
him,  it  was  a  great  pity  that  those  of  whom  he  had 
a  right  to  expect  better  treatment,  could  not  let  him 
alone.  Pretty  soon  warning  letters  began  to  arrive 
from  Mr.  Gilbert,  with  whom  George  had  kept  up  a 
constant  correspondence  ever  since  he  had  been  on 
the  river.  The  first  one  conveyed  to  him  the  infor- 
mation that  Uncle  John  had  discharged  Jake  and 
Bob,  and  all  the  other  herdsmen  who  had  found 
employment  on  the  ranche  during  his  father's  life- 
time, and  hired  others  in  their  places. 

"  That's  some  of  my  affectionate  cousin's  spite 
work,"  said  George  to  himself.  "But  he  can't 
injure  me  in  that  way.  One  herdsman  is  about  as 
good  as  another,  and  when  I  return  to  Texas,  if  I 
ever  do,  I  can  get  all  those  old-time  fellows  back 
again.  It  wouldn't  seem  like  home  to  me  there 
without  them." 

In  another  letter,  which  George  received  about 
two  months  later,  Mr.  Gilbert  told  him  that  three 
very  fine  herds  had  been  lost  through  the  impru- 
dence or  criminality  of  the  men  in  charge  cf  them, 
who,  in  spite  of  the  warnings  of  the  settlers,  per- 
sisted in  pasturing  them  too  close  to  the  river  for 
safety. 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  343 

"  That's  a  more  important  matter,"  thought 
George.  "  It  looks  too  much  as  though  Uncle  John 
was  paying  Fletcher  hush-money.  I  must  see  to 
that." 

He  thanked  Mr.  Gilbert  for  keeping  so  watchful 
an  eye  on  his  interests,  and  took  Uncle  John  to 
task  for  losing  those  herds  in  a  way  that  made  him 
and  Ned  very  angry.  Two  months  more  elapsed 
and  a  third  letter  told  George  that  his  uncle  was 
selling  stock  as  fast  as  he  had  the  opportunity.  He 
thanked  Mr.  Gilbert  again  and  wrote  to  his  uncle. 

"  Have  you  forgotten  the  agreement  made  be- 
tween us  during  our  second  interview  at  the  hotel 
in  Brownsville  ?  I  shall  be  down  there  to  see  about 
your  selling  stock,  which  you  were  positively  for- 
bidden to  do,  and  I  shall  call  upon  you  for  a  strict 
account  of  your  stewardship." 

George  had  intended  to  quit  the  river  at  once, 
and  go  home  and  assume  charge  of  his  property  with 
Mr.  Gilbert  for  a  guardian  ;  but  unfortunately  Mr. 
Black  was  taken  ill  about  the  time  he  had  made  up 
his  mind  to  start.  He  was  not  so  ill  that  he  was 
obliged  to  take  to  his  bed,  but  he  was  not  able  to 
stand  his  regular  watch.  Moreover,  he  was  in  such 
a  state  financially  that  idleness  meant  ruin  to  him. 


344  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

"I  don't  see  how  I  can  spare  you  just  now," 
said  he,  when  George  told  him  that  his  presence 
was  needed  at  home.  "  I  know  I  ought  not  to  run 
on  the  river,  but  when  I  look  at  my  pocket-book,  it 
tells  me  I  must.  If  you  will  only  stay  with  me  a 
little  while  longer,  I  shall  be  ahead  of  the  hounds ; 
but  if  you  leave  me  now,  I  don't  know  what  I 
shall  do." 

"Well,  don't  worry  over  it,"  said  George,  after 
Mr.  Black  had  talked  to  him  in  this  way  a  few 
times.  "I'll  stay.  I  can  better  afford  to  lose  a 
little  more  through  Uncle  John,  than  Mr.  Black  can 
afford  to  lie  idle  with  all  those  notes  to  meet,"  he 
added,  to  himself.  "  But  just  as  soon  as  he  gets 
firmly  on  his  feet,  I  shall  start  for  Texas,  to  look 
into  my  guardian's  way  of  doing  business." 

The  last  boat  that  George  Ackerman  ever  backed 
out  from  a  St.  Louis  wharf-boat,  was  the  Sam  Ken- 
dall— a  crazy  old  craft,  all  paint  and  gilt  outside, 
but  "rotten  to  the  heart,"  as  the  rivermen  said.  If 
she  had  been  a  sea-going  vessel,  she  would  have  been 
called  a  "coffin  ship."  By  this  time,  Mr.  Black 
had  so  far  recovered  his  strength  that  he  was  able 
to  do  a  little  duty,  and  he  hoped  that  by  the  time 
he  returned  to  St.  Louis,  his  health  would  be  fully 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  345 

restored.  George  had  resolved,  that  if  these  expec- 
tations were  realized,  his  piloting  should  end  with 
this  trip  on  the  Kendall. 

They  reached  New  Orleans  without  any  mishap, 
her  cargo  wras  discharged,  another  one  taken  on 
board,  and  the  Kendall  was  made  ready  for  her  trip 
up  the  river.  The  passengers  began  to  arrive ;  and 
while  Mr.  Black  sat  on  the  boiler-deck,  watching 
them  as  they  came  up  the  gang-plank,  and  waiting 
for  George,  who  had  gone  ashore  to  purchase  some 
papers  for  him,  he  discovered  among  them  a  pom- 
pous old  gentleman  with  a  gold-headed  cane,  whom 
he  was  sure  he  recognised.  He  turned  and  looked 
at  the  gentleman  as  he  came  up  the  stairs,  and  tell- 
ing himself  that  he  had  made  no  mistake,  arose  and 
extended  his  hand  to  him. 

"  Why,  general,  how  are  you ?"  said  he.  "I  did 
not  expect  to  see  you  here." 

Uncle  John,  for  it  was  he,  gave  him  a  haughty 
stare  for  an  answer.  Then  he  raised  his  eye-glass 
and  looked  at  the  pilot  through  it. 

"I  am  Mr.  Black,  you  know,"  said  the  latter. 
w  George  Ackerman's " 

"0  yes,  yes!"  exclaimed  Uncle  John,  who  was 
cordial  enough  now — not  because  he  liked  the  pilot, 


346  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

but  because  he  believed  the  man  could  serve  him. 
u  Are  you  and  George  attached  to  this  boat  ?  Well, 
that's  fortunate.  Where  is  George?" 

UI  am  expecting  him  every  moment,"  replied 
Mr.  Black.  "  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  he  is  going  to 
leave  me.  I  really  don't  see  how  I  can  get  along 
without  him." 

"  I  believe  there  was  a  distinct  understanding 
between  you  and  him,  that  he  was  to  remain  with 
you  until  he  learned  the  river,"  said  Uncle  John,  as 
he  and  the  pilot  sealed  themselves.  "  You  told  me 
that  it  would  take  him  three  years  or  more  to  do 
that,  but  he  has  been  with  you  scarcely  eighteen 
months." 

"  But  what  am  I  to  do  when  he  positively  refuses 
to  stay  with  me  any  longer  ?"  inquired  Mr.  Black. 

"Reason  with  him,"  was  the  answer.  "Talk 
him  into  a  different  frame  of  mind." 

"  I  have  tried  to  do  that,  but  it  is  of  no  use.  He 
says  that  matters  in  Texas  demand  his  immediate 
attention." 

"  What  put  that  notion  into  his  head  ?"  asked 
Uncle  John,  who  wanted  to  know  whether  or  not 
the  pilot  knew  anything  of  George's  history  and 
home  life. 


LIFE   IN    THE    PILOT-IK  USE.  347 

"  I  am  sure  I  don't  know.  He  receives  letters 
from  there  regularly,  and  I  supposed  they  came  from 
you." 

"Well,  I  never  said  anything  to  indicate  that 
his  presence  there  was  needed,"  said  Uncle  John, 
who,  during  the  long  months  that  his  nephew  had 
been  on  the  river  had  written  but  two  letters  to 
him,  and  they  we're  wholly  taken  up  with  denying 
the  accusations  that  George  brought  against  him. 
"I  don't  want  him  to  leave  the  river — he  mustn't; 
I'll  not  consent  to  it.  Of  course  I  should  like 
to  have  him  at  home  with  me,  but  I  don't  need  him 
there,  for  everything  is  going  on  to  my  entire  satis- 
faction ;  and  this  way  of  running  from  pillar  to 
post,  picking  up  first  one  business  and  then  an- 
other, won't  do.  It  gets  a  boy  into  bad  habits. 
You  must  keep  him  here,  Mr.  Black." 

The  pilot,  who  had  almost  come  to  look  upon 
George  as  one  of  his  own  children,  was  delighted 
to  find  that  his  guardian  did  not  approve  the  course 
upon  which  he  had  determined,  and  promised  that 
he  would  use  every  argument  he  could  think  of  to 
induce  the  boy  to  stay  on  the  river  until  he  became 
a  licensed  pilot;  although  when  he  made  the  pro- 
mise he  remarked  that  he  didn't  see  how  he  could 


848  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

say  more  than  he  had  already  said,  and  that,  too, 
without  producing  the  least  effect. 

"Well,  use  your  best  endeavors,"  urged  Uncle 
John.  "  Try  every  plan  you  think  of,  and  if  you 
succeed,  I  shall  be  your  debtor  for  any  amount  that 
you  have  a  mind  to  draw  on  me  for." 

Uncle  John  said  a  good  deal  more  to  the  same 
purport,  and  he  was  so  deeply  in*  earnest  about  it 
that  it  was  a  wonder  that  the  pilot  did  not  suspect 
something.  The  latter  said  he  would  not  draw  on 
the  "general"  for  a  cent,  but  he  would  try  to  keep 
the  boy  with  him,  for  he  was  very  fond  of  him, 
and  believed  that  he  would  make  a  good  pilot. 

"  I  hope  you  will  be  successful,"  thought  Uncle 
John,  as  he  arose  and  walked  into  the  cabin. 
"But  whether  you  are  or  not,  George  can  make 
up  his  mind  to  one  thing — he  is  not  going  back  to 
Texas  to  get  me  into  trouble." 

Mr.  Black  kept  his  seat  on  the  boiler-deck,  and 
while  he  was  wondering  what  he  could  say  to 
George  that  would  induce  him  to  stay  on  the  river, 
at  least  eighteen  months  longer,  he  discovered  the 
boy  coming  across  the  levee.  Mr.  Black's  face 
must  have  told  the  young  pilot  that  his  friend  had 
some  news  for  him;  for,  as  he  mounted  the  steps 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  349 

and  stopped  beside  his  chair,  he  said,  with  a  smile, 
"Well,  what  is  it?" 

"Prepare  to  be  astonished,"  answered  Mr.  Black, 
a?  he  took  the  papers  that  George  held  out  to  him. 
"  The  general  is  here." 

"  The  general !  General  who  ?" 

"Why,  your  uncle,  John  Ackerman." 

"Oh,  great  Caesar,  is  he  here?"  cried  George. 
"Are  you  sure?" 

"Am  I  sure  that  I  have  eyes  and  ears?  Of 
course  he  is  here,  and  I  have  had  a  long  talk  with 
him.  He  says  he  doesn't  want  you  at  home,  that 
everything  is  going  smoothly  there,  and  that  he 
will  not  consent  to  your  leaving  the  river." 

If  Mr.  Black  could  have  read  the  thoughts  that 
were  passing  through  the  young  pilot's  mind,  he 
would  have  been  astonished  beyond  measure.  He 
knew  nothing  whatever  of  the  boy's  private  affairs, 
for  the  latter  had  made  a  confident  of  no  one 
except  Mr.  Gilbert;  but  he  was  sharp  enough  to 
see  that  the  "general's"  wishes  would  have  no 
weight  whatever  with  George. 

"  Is  there  anybody  with  Uncle  John  ?"  asked  the 
young  pilot,  as  soon  as  he  had  recovered  from  hia 
surprise. 


850  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  I  didn't  see  anybody.  I  think  he  is  alone. 
During  our  conversation,  he  informed  me  that  he 
was  going  up  the  river  on  business,  and  that  he  had 
struck  this  boat  by  the  merest  accident,  not  knowing 
that  we  belonged  to  her." 

Leaving  Mr.  Black  to  the  enjoyment  of  his  papers, 
George  walked  into  the  cabin  and  looked  all  around 
for  his  uncle.  He  was  not  in  sight,  but  the  clerks 
told  him  that  a  gentleman  who  answered  to  the  name 
and  description  he  gave  them,  had  purchased  a 
ticket  for  St.  Louis,  and  been  assigned  to  a  state- 
room ;  so  George  sat  down  in  the  cabin  to  wait  until 
he  made  his  appearance. 

Those  who  witnessed  the  meeting  between  the 
young  pilot  and  his  relative,  who  called  him  his 
"dear  nephew  "  loud  enough  to  be  heard  by  every 
body  in  the  cabin,  told  one  another,  that  Uncle  John 
certainly  thought  a  great  deal  of  the  boy,  and  that 
George  ought  to  have  his  ears  boxed  for  giving  him 
so  cold  a  reception.  If  their  meeting  had  taken 
place  in  private,  Uncle  John  would  not  have  been 
quite  so  effusive.  He  felt  more  like  seizing  George 
by  the  collar,  than  shaking  him  by  the  hand. 

"Where's  Ned?"  asked  the  boy,  after  a  few  com- 
mon-place remarks  had  passed  between  them. 


GEORGE   AT    THE   WHEEL  ;    OR,  351 

"  He  is  at  home,"  replied  Uncle  John.  "  He  has 
started  a  herd  of  cattle,  and  is  trying  to  show  the 
folks  there,  that  he  is  capable  of  making  an  honest 
living.  The  troubles  into  which  he  so  thoughtlessly 
brought  himself  are  happily  settled,  and  he  is  very 
well  contented.  "What  has  become  of  Gus  Robbins 
I  don't  know.  But,  George,  what  is  this  I  hear 
about  your  leaving  the  river  ?  You  surely  haven't 
made  up  your  mind  to  that?" 

"I  certainly  have,"  answered  George,  emphati- 
cally. "  I  am  contented  here  and  should  be  glad 
to  stay,  but  you  won't  let  me.  You  have  broken 
every  promise  you  made  me  in  Brownsville." 

"George,"  said  Uncle  John,  earnestly,  "every 
word  that  Mr.  Gilbert  has  written  you  about  me 
and  my  doings  is  false — utterly  false." 

"  I  have  never  caught  him  in  a  lie,  and  I  don't 
believe  he  knows  how  to  tell  one,"  said  George,  with 
great  spirit.  "  At  any  rate,  I  am  going  down  there 
as  soon  as  this  trip  is  ended,  to  satisfy  myself  of  the 
truth  of  what  I  have  heard." 

"  Very  well,"  replied  Uncle  John,  indifferently. 
"  If  that  is  your  determination,  you  are  at  liberty  to 
act  upon  it  as  soon  as  you  please.  If  I  get  through 
my  business  at  St.  Louis  in  time,  I  shall  be  glad  to 


352  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

go  with  you.  Young  man,"  he  added,  mentally, 
uyou  are  not  going  back  to  Texas." 

"  I  don't  know  whether  I  want  him  to  travel  with 
me  or  not,"  thought  George,  as  his  uncle  arose  and 
walked  out  of  the  cabin.  "  Something  tells  me  that 
I  shall  be  safer  if  I  go  alone.  His  desire  to  keep 
me  away  from  Texas,  makes  me  all  the  more  deter- 
mined to  go  there." 

Having  given  his  uncle  time  to  get  out  of  the 
way,  George  left  the  cabin  and  turned  toward  Mr. 
Black,  whom  he  found  looking  down  at  the  deck  in 
a  brown  study.  "  George,"  said  he,  in  a  low  tone, 
"  I  have  been  looking  for  it  for  a  long  time,  and  it 
has  come  at  last.  I  have  made  many  a  trip  on  this 
old  tub,  and  every  time  I  thought  I  had  made  my 
last  one — that  before  I  should  be  employed  to  handle 
her  wheel  again,  something  would  happen  to  her. 
I  have  seen  the  sign,  and  I  predict  that  this  is  her 
last  trip !" 

"What  do  you  mean?"  said  George,  drawing  a 
chair  into  such  a  position,  that  he  could  look  into 
Mr.  Black's  face  when  he  sat  down. 

The  pilot  turned  about,  and  after  running  his  eye 
around  the  boiler  deck,  directed  George's  attention 
to  a  gentlemanly-looking  passenger  who  was  dressed 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  353 

in  black,  and  wore  a  white  neckcloth.  "  I  see  him. 
He's  a  gambler,  I  suppose,"  said  George,  who  knew 
that  these  gentry,  during  their  trips  up  and  down 
the  river,  assume  all  sorts  of  disguises  to  assist  them 
in  fleecing  the  unwary. 

"No,  he  isn't;  and  that's  the  worst  of  it," 
exclaimed  Mr.  Black.  "  If  he  belonged  to  that 
class,  the  old  Sam  Kendall  would  be  safe  enough, 
for  she  has  carried  an  army  of  them,  first  and  last. 
He's  a  preacher,  and  he  brought  a  gray  horse 
aboard  with  him." 

George,  who  knew  the  saying  among  rivermen, 
that  a  minister  and  a  gray  horse  would  sink  any 
boat  that  ever  floated,  jumped  to  his  feet  with  an 
exclamation  of  impatience. 

"  0,  you  may  say  <  pshaw !'  as  much  as  you 
please,"  replied  Mr.  Black,  solemnly,  "  but  I  tell 
you,  that  the  Kendall  is  a  dead  duck.  You'll  never 
steer  her  into  St.  Louis.  That's  my  prediction  and 
1  want  you  to  remember  it." 

George  did  recall  it  to  mind  when  he  and  Bob 
Owens,  the  boy  who  had  twice  saved  his  life,  sat 
shivering  on  the  bank  of  the  river  and  watched  the 
Sam  Kendall  as  she  burned  to  the  water's  edge ; 

but  that  the  minister  and  his  grav  horse  had  any- 
23 


354  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

thing  to  do  with  her  destruction,  was  something  he 
could  not  think  of  without  getting  angry.  Mr. 
Black  was  honest  in  his  belief  that  the  Kendall  was 
a  doomed  boat,  and  so  was  Mr.  Scanlan;  and  after 
they  left  New  Orleans,  one  or  the  other  of  them  was 
always  in  the  pilot  house.  But  it  happened  that 
the  minister  and  his  gray  horse  went  ashore  at 
Donaldson ville,  and  then  the  pilots  breathed  a  little 
easier. 

"There!"  said  George,  as  the  obnoxious  passenger 
disappeared  over  the  levee,  all  unconscious  of  the 
alarm  which  the  mere  presence  of  himself  and  his 
beast  had  excited  in  the  minds  of  some  brave  but 
superstitious  men.  "  We  brought  him  up  here  all 
right,  and  the  old  Kendall  is  still  on  top  of  the 
water." 

"I  am  glad  to  see  him  go,"  answered  Mr.  Black, 
"  but  the  run  isn't  over  yet.  There  are  a  good 
many  miles  between  here  and  St.  Louis.  But, 
George,  if  we  do  get  through  all  right  you'll  stay 
with  me,  won't  you?" 

Mr.  Black  and  his  partner  had  of  late  fallen  into 
the  way  of  asking  George  some  such  question  as 
this  every  time  they  ertered  into  conversation  with 
him;  but  they  could  say  nothing  to  make  him 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  355 

change  his  mind.  Sometimes  the  boy  was  on  the 
point  of  telling  them  everything  and  then  asking 
them  what  they  thought  about  it ;  but  he  as  often 
checked  himself,  for  he  could  not  bear  that  even  his 
friend  Mr.  Black  should  know  what  a  rascal  his 
Uncle  John  was. 

One  gloomy  night  George  stood  alone  at  the 
wheel,  while  the  Kendall,  with  all  her  berths  full 
of  sleeping  passengers,  was  ploughing  her  way  up 
the  river  through  darkness  so  intense  that  one  could 
scarcely  see  his  hand  before  him.  Mr.  Scanlan  was 
snoring  loudly  in  his  bunk.  Mr.  Black,  who  had 
tired  himself  out  by  standing  his  regular  watch 
between  New  Orleans  and  Donaldsonville,  had  gone 
below  to  obtain  a  little  rest,  and  George  had  the 
pilot-house  to  himself.  He  generally  felt  a  thrill 
of  pride  on  such  occasions  as  these,  for  the  re- 
sponsibility that  was  placed  upon  him  made  him 
think  that  he  was  of  some  use  in  the  world ;  but 
on  this  particular  night  he  was  anything  but  cheer- 
ful, He  was  certain  that  the  minister  and  his 
gray  horse  had  nothing  to  do  with  it,  he  was 
equally  sure  that  the  unwelcome  presence  of  his 
Uncle  John,  who  now  and  then  passed  before  him 
like  a  thunder-cloud  across  a  clear  sky,  was  not 


356  GEORGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

exerting  a  depressing  influence  upon  him,  but  still 
he  was  very  uncomfortable,  and  could  not  rid  him- 
self of  the  impression  that  there  was  danger  hang- 
ing over  him. 

Being  constantly  on  the  alert  George  did  not 
fail  to  see  the  bright  light  on  shore  which  suddenly 
shot  up  through  the  darkness,  and  which  he  knew 
was  a  notice  to  the  Kendall  that  there  were  passen- 
gers or  freight  waiting  for  her  at  that  landing.  He 
blew  the  whistle,  warned  the  engineers,  rang  the 
bell  for  the  lead,  turned  the  bow  of  the  steamer 
toward  the  fire,  and  just  then  Mr.  Black,  who  had 
heard  all  these  signals,  came  into  the  pilot-house. 
He  allowed  the  boy  to  make  the  landing,  which 
the  latter  did  in  his  usual  good  style,  and  then  he 
lay  down  on  the  bench  with  his  hat  for  a  pillow, 
while  George  went  down  to  the  boiler-deck. 

After  awhile  he  saw  a  boy  dressed  in  black, 
wearing  his  hat  low  over  his  forehead  and  carrying 
a  valise  in  his  hand,  come  up  the  gang-plank  and 
disappear  in  the  direction  of  the  engine-room,  but 
he  did  not  pay  any  particular  attention  to  him. 
This  was  Bob  Owens,  with  whom  George  was 
destined  to  have  a  good  deal  to  do  during  the  next 
few  years  of  his  life.  Bob,  as  we  know,  had  stolen 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT-HOUSE.  857 

a  large  sum  of  money  from  David  Evans,  THE 
MAIL  CARRIER,  and  run  away  from  his  home  in 
Ilockdale  to  enjoy  it.  When  he  reached  Linwood 
landing  he  was  arrested  by  the  constable,  who 
suspected  him  of  having  stolen  the  horse  he  was 
riding,  but  which  was  Bob's  own  private  property. 
Through  the  gross  carelessness  of  that  officer  he 
managed  to  escape  from  him  very  easily,  and  hav- 
ing turned  his  horse  loose  and  started  him  toward 
home,  he  changed  his  clothes  and  boarded  the  Ken- 
dall, intending  to  go  to  St.  Louis  on  her.  When 
he  reached  that  city  he  was  going  to  buy  a  horse 
and  rifle  and  plunge  into  the  wilderness  to  win  a 
name  for  himself  as  a  borderman;  but  circum- 
stances arose  which  induced  him  to  change  his 
plans.  He  did  win  a  name  for  himself,  but  it  was 
as  a  soldier  and  not  as  a  hunter. 

When  George  became  tired  of  watching  the 
crew  at  their  work,  he  moved  over  to  the  other 
side  of  the  boiler-deck,  and  seating  himself  on  the 
railing  looked  at  a  steamer  that  was  going  up  the 
river  and  thought  of  the  future.  lie  became  so 
completely  engrossed  in  his  meditations  concerning 
his  hard  lot  in  life  that  he  did  not  know  that  the 
bell  rang,  that  the  lines  were  cast  off,  that  the  pad- 


358  GEOKGE   AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

die-wheels  were  set  in  motion,  and  that  the  boat 
began  to  swing  away  from  the  landing.  The  sound 
that  aroused  him  from  his  reverie  was  a  stealthy 
footstep  on  the  guard  behind  him.  He  turned 
quickly  and  saw  his  Uncle  John  at  his  side;  but 
before  he  could  speak  to  him  the  man  gave  him  a 
push  that  sent  him  into  the  river.  He  went  over 
the  rail  with  such  force  that  he  turned  a  complete 
somersault,  and  striking  the  water  feet  first  "  went 
clear  down  to  China,"  as  he  afterward  declared, 
although  his  friends  rather  doubted  this  from  the 
fact  that  he  could  give  no  clear  account  of  wThat 
he  saw  there. 

When  George  found  himself  struggling  in  the 
water,  he  lost  all  heart.  He  could  not  swrim, 
although  he  made  a  feeble  attempt  to  do  so  as  soon 
as  he  arose  to  the  surface.  He  did  not  hear  the 
uproar  that  arose  on  board  the  steamer,  or  the 
frantic  orders  to  "stop  her,"  which  the  mates 
shouted  up  at  the  captain,  nor  did  he  see  the  boy 
who  plunged  fearlessly  into  the  river  and  swam  to 
his  assistance.  But  he  felt  his  grasp,  and  resigning 
himself  entirely  to  the  boy's  control,  he  wras  towed 
safely  to  the  shore.  His  rescuer  was  Bob  Owens. 
He  told  the  young  pilot  something  of  his  plans 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  359 

•while  they  were  changing  their  wet  clothes  for  dry 
ones,  and  it  was  through  him  that  Bob  was  induced 
to  abandon,  for  the  present,  his  idea  of  becoming  a 
hunter.  The  two  boys  became  fast  friends,  and 
their  friendship  lasted  until  they  got  into  trouble 
that  tested  Bob's  a  little  too  severely. 

After  the  young  pilot  and  his  companion  had 
eaten  a  hasty  lunch,  they  went  up  into  the  pilot- 
house, and  while  they  were  there  an  alarm  of  fire 
was  raised.  It  is  believed  to  this  day,  that  the 
captain  of  the  Kendall,  after  trying  in  vain  to  run 
her  upon  a  snag  which  had  been  the  destruction  of 
two  or  three  boats,  applied  the  torch  to  her  in  order 
that  he  might  pocket  the  money  for  which  she  was 
insured ;  but  this  act,  like  Uncle  John's  attempt  to 
drown  his  nephew,  had  no  witnesses,  and  nothing 
could  be  proved  against  him. 

During  the  wild  scenes  that  followed,  Bob  Owens, 
who  possessed  physical  courage  in  the  same  degree 
that  he  lacked  moral  courage,  exerted  himself  to 
the  utmos-t  to  rescue  the  passengers  and  crew  whom 
the  flames  had  driven  to  the  forecastle,  but  was  at 
last  obliged  to  take  to  the  water  in  order  to  save 
himself.  He  assisted  George's  worst  enemy,  who 
could  not  swim,  by  placing  in  his  hands  an  oar  that 


360  GEOR'GE    AT   THE   WHEEL  ;    OK, 

supported  him  while  he  floated  down  the  current, 
and  discovering  the  young  pilot  clinging  to  the 
rudder,  took  him  safely  to  the  shore  for  the  sec<  rid 
time.  They  warmed  and  dried  themselves  in  the 
cabin  of  a  friendly  trapper,  and  after  spending 
some  time  in  discussing  the  plans  upon  which  they 
had  determined,  they  set  out  to  walk  to  White 
river  landing,  where  they  found  a  boat  that  took 
them  to  New  Orleans. 

Now  it  so  happened  that  Uncle  John  was  in  the 
cabin  at  the  same  time  the  boys  were  there,  having 
been  pulled  out  of  the  river  by  the  trapper,  who 
saw  him  floating  by  on  his  oar.  His  clothing  was 
drying  in  front  of  the  fire,  and  he  was  so  closely 
wrapped  up  in  the  only  blanket  the  trapper  pos- 
sessed, that  his  nephew  did  not  recognise  him.  He 
heard  George  tell  his  new  friend  that  he  was  going 
to  take  him  to  Texas  and  make  a  brother  of  him, 
and  as  soon  as  the  boys  started  for  White  river, 
he  set  to  work  to  defeat  this  plan.  He  went  to 
New  Orleans  on  a  steamer  which  the  trapper  hailed 
for  him,  and  while  in  that  city,  made  an  effort  to 
separate  the  boys  by  enticing  Bob  on  board  a 
steamer  that  was  bound  to  some  port  in  South 
America.  He  had  nothing  against  Bob,  but  he 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT- 1IOLSE. 


3G1 


knew  that  lie  had  money,  while  George  had  none; 
and  his  object  was  to  keep  the  latter  in  New 
Orleans  until  he  could  run  down  to  Texas  and 
straighten  up  some  things  there  that  he  had  left  in 
a  pretty  bad  state.  But  this  plot  was  frustrated, 
and  George  and  Bob  sailed  in  company  for  Gal- 
veston.  There  Bob's  pocket  was  picked,  and  the 
two  friends  found  themselves  in  a  strange  city, 
hungry,  penniless  and  without  a  roof  to  shelter 
them.  They  spent  the  whole  night  on  the  streets, 
keeping  constantly  in  motion  in  order  to  avoid 
arrest,  and  the  next  day  looking  in  vain  for  work. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  of  this  particular  day, 
Bob  made  a  discovery  that  proved  too  much  for  his 
friendship.  He  found  a  fifty  cent  scrip  in  his 
watch-pocket.  That  would  provide  him  with  a 
good  supper  and  a  bed  to  sleep  in.  It  was  not 
enough  to  pay  for  supper  and  lodging  for  George, 
too,  and  believing  that  he  had  already  shown  his 
good-will  for  him  by  saving  his  life  when  he  could 
not  possibly  have  saved  it  himself,  Bob  slipped 
away  from  his  companion  and  hunted  up  a  cheap 
lodging-house,  where  he  had  a  square  meal  and  a 
night's  rest.  The  next  day  he  enlisted  in  the  army. 
There  was  where  we  left  him,  and  where  we  shall 


362  GEORGE   AT   THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

find  him  the  next  time  we  see  him.  Surprising  as 
it  may  seemx  his  life  and  George's  ran  on  in  the 
same  channel  for  months,  and  we  shall  have  a  good 
deal  to  say  about  them  and  their  exploits. 

George  never  dreamed  that  Bob  had  deliberately 
deserted  him.  He  missed  him  after  a  while,  and 
turning  back,  looked  everywhere  for  him.  Al- 
though he  did  not  find  him,  he  found  somebody 
else,  and  that  was  Mr.  Gilbert,  the  very  man  he 
wanted  most  to  see  just  then.  The  last  time  the 
young  pilot  saw  him  he  wore  a  red  shirt,  coarse 
trousers,  cowhide  boots  and  a  slouch  hat.  Now  he 
was  dressed  in  clothing  of  the  latest  cut,  and  it 
made  so  great  a  change  in  his  appearance  that 
the  boy  was  not  sure  of  his  identity  until  he 
heard  his  voice  and  felt  the  cordial  grasp  of  his 
hand. 

"Where  are  you  stopping?"  asked  Mr.  Gilbert, 
after  each  had  expressed  the  surprise  and  pleasure 
he  felt  at  meeting  the  other. 

George  moved  his  hand  up  and  down  the  street. 
"This  is  my  hotel,"  said  he,  with  a  laugh.  "I 
haven't  a  cent  in  my  pocket,  and  have  eaten  but 
one  very  light  meal  to-day." 

"Is   that  so?"   exclaimed  Mr.   Gilbert,   seizing 


LIFE   IN   THE   PILOT  HOUSE.  363 

the  boy  by  the  arm  and  turning  him  around. 
"Come  to  my  hotel." 

"Hold  on  a  moment,"  answered  George.  "I 
have  a  friend  who  is  as  hungry  as  I  am.  I  have 
only  just  lost  him,  and  he  must  be  close  about 
here." 

"Well,  you  know  him,  and  I  don't.  Keep  a 
sharp  lookout  for  him,  and  tell  me  your  story  as 
we  walk  along.  Then  I  will  tell  you  something 
that  will  astonish  you." 

This  announcement  made  George  cut  his  narra- 
tive rather  shorter  than  he  would  otherwise  have 
done;  but  still  he  dwelt  long  enough  on  all  the 
important  points  in  it  to  enable  Mr.  Gilbert  to 
understand  just  what  had  happened  on  board  the 
Sam  Kendall.  He  did  not  go  any  farther  back 
in  his  history  than  the  beginning  of  his  connection 
with  that  boat,  for  everything  that  had  happened 
previous  to  that  time  had  been  fully  described  in 
his  letters.  He  wound  up  his  story  by  saying : 

"  You  will  hardly  believe  it,  Mr.  Gilbert,  but 
Uncle  John  really  did  push  me  overboard." 

"It  is  not  so  hard  for  me  to  believe  as  you  may 
suppose,"  answered  Mr.  Gilbert.  "I  know  more 
about  that  man  than  you  think  I  do." 


364  GEORGE    AT   THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

"  I  am  going  to  take  your  advice  now  and  have 
a  new  guardian  appointed,"  continued  George. 
"You  will  bear  me  witness  that  I  have  been  very 
patient  with  Uncle  John,  and  that  I  have  been 
willing  to  submit  to  almost  anything  rather  than 
bring  him  into  trouble;  but  his  recent  attempt  on 
my  life  has  shown  me  what  he  is  capable  of,  and  I 
know  I  am  not  safe  while  he  is  near  me.  Don't 
say  anything  about  that,  for  I  don't  want  the  set- 
lers  to  know  it." 

"  It  isn't  necessary,"  replied  Mr.  Gilbert.  "  They 
are  as  mad  at  him  already  as  they  can  be,  and  at 
you  and  me,  too." 

"They  are!"  exclaimed  George.  "What  are 
they  mad  about?  What  do  they  know  about  my 
affairs?" 

"  They  know  all  about  them.  The  whole  thing 
has  been  let  out  among  them  and  the  rope  is  ready. 
I  had  just  time  to  put  Ned  on  a  horse  and  run 
with  him.  If  I  had  been  five  minutes  later  some- 
thing disagreeable " 

"Mr.  Gilbert,"  interrupted  George.  "You 
surely  haven't  been " 

"  No ;  I  haven't.  I  kept  a  still  tongue  in  my 
head  until  I  found  that  everybody  in  the  settlement 


LIFE    IN    THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  365 

knew  as  much  as  I  did,  and  that  was  what  made 
the  neighbors  mad  at  me  and  you,  too.  They 
say  we  ought  to  have  told  them  about  Uncle  John, 
so  that  they  could  have  run  him  out  of  the  country. 
If  evidence  was  wanting  to  prove  the  truth  of  the 
story  you  told  Mr.  Lowry,  Joe  and  myself,  re- 
garding your  experience  among  the  Contra-Guer- 
rillas,"  continued  Mr.  Gilbert,  "that  evidence  has 
been  produced.  The  regiment  was  almost  cut  to 
pieces  at  Queretaro,  and  out  of  the  seven  hundred 
men  who  went  into  the  last  fight  there,  scarcely 
more  than  one-quarter  of  them  came  out  to  tell 
about  it.  As  bad  luck  would  have  it,  Fletcher  and 
most  of  his  gang  escaped,  and  they  have  come  back 
to  the  Rio  and  gone  into  their  old  business  of  steal- 
ing cattle.  Fletcher  has  made  several  demands 
upon  your  uncle  for  hush-money,  threatening,  in 
case  those  demands  were  not  complied  with,  to  tell 
the  settlers  that  he  was  hired  to  make  an  end  of 
you,  and  that  was  the  way  you  came  to  lose  those 
herds.  But  there  was  one  in  the  gang  who  couldn't 
stand  that,  and  his  name  was  Springer.  He 
couldn't  forget  that  you  had  helped  him  to  save 
his  life,  and  so  he  came  over  among  the  settlers 
and  told  everything  about  Uncle  John  and  his 


366  GEORGE    AT    THE   WHEEL;    OR, 

plans.  Luckily  this  happened  after  your  uncle 
had  started  for  St.  Louis.  If  it  had  happened 
before,  it  is  probable  that  you  wouldn't  have  had 
any  guardian  now.  They  threatened  vengeance 
against  Ned,  and  that  was  the  reason  I  ran  off  with 
him.  By  the  way,  do  you  know  what  Uncle  John's 
business  was  in  St.  Louis  ?  Neither  do  1,  but  it's 
my  opinion  that  he  was  going  there  to  deposit  the 
money  he  received  for  the  last  cattle  he  sold.'* 

George  was  indeed  astonished  by  this  revelation. 
He  forgot  that  Uncle  John  had  twice  put  his  life 
in  jeopardy,  and  thought  only  of  the  danger  that 
threatened  him  when  he  returned  to  the  rancho. 
"  He  mustn't  go  back  there,"  said  the  boy;  "but 
how  are  we  going  to  prevent  it  ?" 

"I  know  of  but  one  way,  and  that  is  to  stay 
here  and  meet  him  when  he  comes."  replied  Mr. 
Gilbert.  "  You  don't  seem  to  find  your  friend,  do 
you  ?  Let's  go  and  get  something  to  eat,  and  then 
we'll  take  another  look  for  him." 

When  they  entered  the  dining-room  of  the  hotel 
at  which  Mr.  Gilbert  and  Ned  were  stopping, 
George  saw  his  cousin  seated  at  one  of  the  tables, 
but  the  latter  wouldn't  look  at  him.  He  also  took 
particular  pains  to  avoid  him  during  the  evening, 


LIFE   IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  367 

and  George,  taking  his  conduct  as  an  indication 
that  Ned  wished  to  hold  no  further  intercourse  with 
him,  made  no  eftbrt  to  approach  him.  After  sup- 
per he  and  Mr.  Gilbert  went  out  to  look  for  Bob 
Owens,  but  could  not  find  him.  During  this  walk 
a  plan  of  operations  was  decided  upon  which  was 
to  be  carried  out  as  soon  as  Uncle  John  made  his 
appearance.  He  came  the  very  next  day,  and 
then  there  was  another  stormy  interview ;  but  we 
will  draw  a  veil  over  that,  won't  we  ?  It  will  be 
enough  to  say  that  at  the  end  of  half  an  hour 
Uncle  John  came  out  of  the  room,  in  which  the 
interview  was  held,  wiping  his  face  vigorously  with 
his  handkerchief;  that  he  and  Ned  set  oif  at  once 
to  find  another  hotel ;  and  that  George  and  Mr. 
Gilbert  took  the  first  train  for  Austin,  the  latter 
carrying  in  his  pocket  a  check  for  nearly  sixty 
thousand  dollars  which  Uncle  John  had  intended 
to  deposit  to  his  own  credit  in  some  bank  in  St. 
Louis.  Uncle  John  did  not  dare  tell  Mr.  Gilbert 
that  everything  the  latter  had  written  to  George 
was  false,  and  when  Mr.  Gilbert  told  him  that  he 
could  make  a  statement  there  in  Galveston  or  go 
back  to  the  rancho  to  do  it,  just  as  he  pleased,  the 
guilty  man  made  a  full  confession.  George  allowed 


368  GEORGE    AT   THE    WHEEL  ;    OR, 

him  every  cent  that  was  due  him,  according  to  the 
terms  of  his  father's  will,  and  everybody  who  heard 
of  it  said  it  was  more  than  Uncle  John  deserved. 

George's  business  in  the  courts  was  soon  trans- 
acted, and  then  he  settled  down  at  his  rancho  with 
his  friend  for  a  guardian,  but  more  his  own  master, 
in  fact,  than  he  had  ever  been  before.  Mr.  Gilbert 
rode  over  nearly  every  day,  just  to  show  his  au- 
thority, as  he  said,  but  in  reality  to  talk  to  George, 
whom  he  was  glad  to  have  for  a  neighbor  again. 
The  settlers  had  a  good  deal  to  say  about  his  rela- 
tives, but  it  was  in  a  good-natured  way,  and  the 
boy  noticed  that  they  never  failed  to  speak  in  the 
most  complimentary  terms  of  his  fidelity  to  them. 

When  George  had  shaken  hands  with  Zeke,  who 
almost  cried  with  joy  at  seeing  him  once  more,  and 
had  got  all  his  old  herdsmen  back,  and  had  received 
letters  from  Mr.  Black  and  Mr.  Scanlan,  both  of 
whom  had  floated  down  the  river  on  a  sofa  until 
they  were  picked  up  by  a  boat  from  the  shore,  he 
thought  he  was  ready  to  settle  down  to  business 
and  to  begin  to  enjoy  himself  in  a  quiet  way;  but. 
as  it  happened,  he  was  not  long  allowed  to  rest  in 
peace.  Our  dilatory  government  at  last  awoke  to 
the  fact  that  if  our  border  along  the  Rio  Grande 


LIFE    IN   THE    PILOT-HOUSE.  369 

was  to  be  protected  at  all,  we  must  protect  it  our- 
selves, and  the  general  commanding  the  Depart- 
ment of  Texas  was  instructed  to  pursue  the  raiding 
parties  across  the  river,  and  punish  them  wherever 
they  could  be  found.  This  raised  the  ardor  of  the 
Texans,  and  every  man  in  George's  neighborhood 
and  every  boy,  too,  who  was  old  enough  to  do 
military  duty,  enrolled  himself  as  a  member  of  a 
company  of  Rangers,  which  was  ready  to  march  in 
less  than  forty-eight  hours  after  it  became  known 
among  the  settlers  that  such  an  order  had  been 
received.  But  the  department  commander,  know- 
ing the  deadly  enmity  that  existed  between  these 
men  and  the  Mexicans,  would  not  accept  their 
services.  It  was  his  intention,  he  said,  to  rely 
entirely  upon  the  regular  troops  under  his  com- 
mand ;  but  he  needed  guides  who  knew  the  coun- 
try on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  and  who  could 
lead  him  to  Don  Miguel's  rancho,  which  was  sup- 
posed to  be  the  headquarters  and  stronghold  of 
the  most  daring  and  formidable  of  the  raiding  par- 
ties— the  one  led  by  Fletcher.  There  was  one  in 
the  settlement  who  could  tell  him  where  to  look  for 
that  rancho,  and  his  services,  which  were  promptly 

offered  to  the  officer  commanding  the  nearest  post, 
24 


370  GEORGE    AT    THE    WHEEL;    OR, 

•were  as  promptly  accepted.  What  our  here  saw 
and  did  after  that,  how  he  fell  in  with  Gus  Bobbins 
and  Bob  Owens,  and  how  the  latter  gained  a  reputa- 
tion as  an  Indian  fighter,  shall  be  told  in  "GEORGE 
AT  THE  FORT;  OR,  LIFE  AMONG  THE  SOLDIERS." 


THE 

FAMOUS 

OASTLEMON 

BOOKS. 

BY 

HARRY 
CASTLEMON. 


Specimen  Cover  of  the  Gunboat 
Series. 


No  author  of  the  present  day  has  become  a  greater  favorite  with  boys  than 
"Harry  Castlemon;  "  every  book  by  him  is  sure  to  meet  w;th  hearty  re- 
ception by  young  readers  generally.  H,s  naturalness  and  vivacity  lead  his 
readers  Irom  page  to  page  with  breathless  interest,  and  when  one  volume  is 
finished  the  fascinated  reader,  like  Oliver  Twist,  asks  "  for  more." 

*$*Any  volume  sold  separately. 


GUNBOAT  SERIES.      By  Harry  Castlemon.      6 
vols.,  12010.     Fully  illustrated.     Cloth,  extra,  printed 

in  colors.     In  box $75° 

Frank,  the  Young  Naturalist    ........  I  25 

Frank  in  the  "Woods i  25 

Frank  on  the  Prairie 12$ 

Frank  on  a  Gunboat I  25 

Frank  before  Vicksburg I  2$ 

Frank  on  the  Lower  Mississippi I  25 


2  PORTER   &  COATES'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES. 

GO  AHEAD  SERIES.  By  Harry  Castlemon.  3 
vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  In  box .  .  $3  75 

Go  Ahead ;  or,  The  Fisher  Boy's  Motto   ......      I  25 

No  Moss ;  or,  The  Career  of  a  Rolling  Stone  ....      I  25 

Tom  Newcombe  ;  or,  The  Boy  of  Bad  Habits     .    .      I  25 

ROCKY  MOUNTAIN  SERIES.  By  Harry 
Castlemon.  3  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth, 
extra,  printed  in  colors.  Inbox  .  . $3  75 

Frank  at  Don  Carlos'  Rancho I  25 

Prank  among  the  Rancheros I  25 

Prank  in  the  Mountains i  25 

SPORTSMAN'S  CLUB  SERIES.  By  Harry 
Castlemon.  3  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth, 
extra,  printed  in  colors.  In  box $3  75 

The   Sportsman's  Club  in  the  Saddle  ....      i  25 

The  Sportsman's  Club  Afloat i  25 

The  Sportsman's  Club  among  the  Trappers  .      i  25 

PRANK  NELSON  SERIES.  By  Harry  Castle- 
mon. 3  vols.  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra, 
printed  in  colors.  In  box $3  75 

Snowed  Up  ;  or,  The  Sportsman's  Club  in  the  Mts.  .      i  25 

Frank  Nelson  in  the  Forecastle  ;  or,  The  Sports- 
man's Club  among  the  Whalers i  25 

The  Boy  Traders  ;  or,  The  Sportsman's  Club  among 

the  Boers I  25 

BOY  TRAPPER  SERIES.  By  Harry  Castlemon. 
3  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  In  box .  $3  75 

The  Buried  Treasure ;  or,  Old  Jordan's  "  Haunt "  i  25 
The  Boy  Trapper ;  or,  How  Dave  Filled  the  Order .  i  25 
The  Mail  Carrier I  25 


PORTER   &   COATES'S   POPULAR   JUVENILES.  3 

ROUGHING  IT  SERIES.  By  Harry  Castlemon. 
3  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  In  box $3  75 

George  in  Camp  ;  or,  Life  on  the  Plains i  25 

George  at  the  "Wheel ;  or,  Life  in  a  Pilot  House  .      i  25 
George  at  the  Fort ;  or,  Life  Among  the  Soldiers  .      i  25 

ROD  AND  GUN  SERIES.  By  Harry  Castlemon. 
3  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  In  box $3  75 

Don  Gordon's  Shooting  Box i  25 

Rod  and  Gun i  25 

The  Young  Wild  Fowlers i  25 

FOREST  AND  STREAM  SERIES.  By  Harry 
Castlemon.  3  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth, 
extra,  printed  in  colors.  In  box $3  75 

Joe  Wayring  at  Home;  or,  Story  of  a  Fly  Rod    .      i  25 

Snagged  and  Sunk  ;  or,  The  Adventures  of  a  Can- 
vas Canoe I25 

Steel  Horse ;  or,  The  Rambles  of  a  Bicycle  ....      i  25 

WAR  SERIES.  By  Harry  Castlemon.  4  vols., 
I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed  in 
colors.  In  box 5  oo 

True  to  his  Colors i  25 

Rodney,  the  Partisan i  25 

Marcy,  the  Blockade  Runner i  25 

Marcy,  the  Refugee i  25 

OUR  FELLOWS ;  or,  Skirmishes  with  the  Swamp 
Dragoons.  By  Harry  Castlemon.  i6mo.  Fully  illus- 
trated. Cloth,  extra .  i  25 


ALGER'S 

RENOWNED 

BOOKS. 

BY 

HORATIO 
ALGER,  JR. 


Specimen  Cover  of  the  Ragged 
Dick  Series. 

Horatio  Alger,  Jr.,  has  attained  distinction  as  one  of  the  most  popular 
writers  of  books  for  boys,  and  the  following  list  comprises  all  of  his  best 
books. 

#*#  Any  volume  sold  separately. 


RAGGED  DICK  SERIES.  By  Horatio  Alger, 
Jr.  6  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra, 
printed  in  colors.  In  box $75° 

Ragged  Dick  ;  or,  Street  Life  in  New  York    ....       I  25 

Fame   and   Fortune;   or,  The  Progress  of  Richard 

Hunter I  25 

Mark,  the  Match  Boy  ;  or,  Richard  Hunter's  Ward     I  25 

Rough  and  Ready ;  or,  Life  among  the  New  York 

Newsboys I  25 

Ben,  the  Luggage  Boy  ;  or,  Among  the  Wharves   .      125 

Hufus   and   Rose ;   or,  the   Fortunes  of  Rough  and 

Rendy I  25 

TATTERED  TOM  SERIES.  (FIRST  SERIES.) 
By  Horatio  Alger,  Jr.  4  vols.,  I2mo^  Fully  illus- 
trated. Cloth,  extra,  printed  in  colors.  In  box  ...  5  OO 

(4) 


PORTER  &  COATES'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES.  $ 

Tattered  Tom  ;  or,  The  Story  of  a  Street  Arab      .    .  I  25 

Paul,  the  Peddler;  or,  The  Adventures  of  a  Young 

Street  Merchant I  25 

Phil,  the  Fiddler ;  or,  The  Young  Street  Musician   .  I  25 

Slow  and  Sure ;  or,  From  the  Sidewalk  to  the  Shop  I  25 

TATTERED  TOM  SERIES.  (SECOND  SERIES.) 
4  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 

in  colors.     In  box $$  oo 

Julius ;  or  the  Street  Boy  Out  West I  25 

The  Young  Outlaw  ;  or,  Adrift  in  the  World  ...  i  25 

Sam's  Chance  and  How  He  Improved  it  „    .    ,  i  25 

The  Telegraph  Boy i  25 

LUCK  AND  PLUCK  SERIES.  (FIRST  SERIES.) 
]'>y  Horatio  Alger,  Jr.  4  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illus- 
trated. Cloth,  extra,  printed  in  colors.  In  box  ...  $$  oo 

Luck  and  Pluck ;  or  John  Oakley's  Inheritance   .    .  i  25 

Sink  or  Swim  ;  or,  Harry  Raymond's  Resolve  ...  I  2,5 

Strong  and  Steady ;  or,  Paddle  Your  Own  Canoe  .  I  25 

Strive  and   Succeed;   or,  The  Progress  of  Walter 

Conrad 12$ 

LUCK  AND  PLUCK  SERIES.  (SECOND 
SERIES.)  By  Horatio  Alger,  Jr.  3  vols.,  I2mo. 
Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed  in  colors.  In 

box $5  oo 

Try  and  Trust ;  or,  The  Story  of  a  Bound  Boy  ...  i  25 

Bound  to  Rise  ;  or  Harry  Walton's  Motto i  25 

Risen  from  the  Ranks;  or,  Harry  Walton's  Success  i  25 

Herbert  Carter's  Legacy  ;  or,  The  Inventor's  Son  .  i  25 

CAMPAIGN  SERIES.  By  Horatio  Alger,  Jr.  3 
vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 

in  colors.     In  box $3  75 

Frank's  Campaign  ;  or,  The  Farm  and  the  Camp    .  i  25 

Paul  Prescott's  Charge i  25 

Charlie  Codman's  Cruise i  25 


6        PORTER  &  COATES'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES. 

BRAVE  AND  BOLD  SERIES.  By  Horatio 
Alger,  Jr.  4  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth, 
extra,  printed  in  colors.  In  box $$  oo 

Brave  and  Bold  ;  or,  The  Story  of  a  Factory  Boy  .  .  i  25 
Jack's  Ward ;  or,  The  Boy  Guardian i  25 

Shifting  for  Himself;  or,  Gilbert  Greyson's  For- 
tunes   i  25 

Wait  and  Hope ;  or,  Ben  Bradford's  Motto  ....      i  25 

PACIFIC  SERIES.  By  Horatio  Alger,  Jr.  4 
vols.  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  In  box $5  oo 

The   Young  Adventurer;  or,   Tom's  Trip  Across 

the  Plaii  s i   25 

The  Young  Miner ;  or,  Tom  Nelson  in  California  .  i  25 
The  Young  Explorer  ;  or,  Among  the  Sierras  .  .  i  25 

Ben's  Nugget ;  or,  A  Boy's  Search  for  Fortune.     A 

Story  of  the  Pacific  Coast   . i  25 

ATLANTIC  SERIES.  By  Horatio  Alger,  Jr.  4 
vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  In  box $5  oo 

The    Young   Circus   Rider;   or,  The   Mystery  of 

Robert  Rudd I  25 

Do  and  Dare  ;  or,  A  Brave  Boy's  Fight  for  Fortune  .  i  25 
Hector's  Inheritance  ;  or,  Boys  of  Smith  Institute  .  i  25 
Helping  Himself ;  or,  Grant  Thornton's  Ambition  .  i  25 

WAY  TO  SUCCESS  SERIES.  By  Horatio 
Alger,  Jr.  4  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth, 
extra,  printed  in  colors.  In  box $5  oo 

Bob  Burton i  25 

The  Store  Boy i  25 

Luke  Walton i  25 

Struggling  Upward i  25 


NEW  BOOK  BY  ALGER. 

DIGGING   FOR  GOLD.      By  Horatio  Alger,  Jr. 

Illustrated  1 2mo.     Cloth,  black,  red  and  gold      ...       I  25 


A 

New  Series 
of  Books. 

Indian  Life 

and 

Character 

Founded  on 

Historical 

Facts. 


Specimen  Cover  of  the  Wyoming 
Series. 


By  Edward  S.  Ellis, 

Any  volume  sold  separately. 


BOY  PIONEER  SERIES.  By  Edward  S.  Ellis. 
3  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 

in  colors.     In  box $3 

Ned  in  the  Block  House  ;  or,  Life  on  the  Frontier.     I 
Ned  in  the  "Woods.     A  Tale  of  the  Early  Days  in 

the  West I 

Ned  on  the  River i 

DEERPOOT  SERIES.  By  Edward  S.  Ellis.  In 
box  containing  the  following.  3  vols.,  12010.  Illus- 
trated    •  '  .  .  .  $3 

Hunters  of  the  Ozark i 

Camp  in  the  Mountains i 

The  Last  War  Trail i 

LOG  CABIN  SERIES.  By  Edward  S.  Ellis. 
3  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  In  box , $3 

(7) 


8  PORTER   &   COATES'S   POPULAR  JUVENILES. 

Lost  Trail $i  25 

Camp  Fire  and  Wigwam i  25 

Footprints  in  the  Forest i  25 

WYOMING  SERIES.  By  Edward  S.  Ellis.  3 
vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 

in  colors.     In  box $3  75 

Wyoming i  25 

Storm  Mountain i  25 

Cabin  in  the  Clearing i  25 

NEW  BOOKS  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS. 

Through  Forest  and  Fire.     I2mo.     Cloth    ...      i  25 
On  the  Trail  of  the  Moose.     i2mo.    Cloth    .   .      i  25 

By  C.  A.  Stephens. 

Rare  books  for  boys — bright,  breezy,  wholesome  and  instructive  ;  full  of 
advcn.ure  and  incident,  and  information  upon  natural  history.  They  blend 
instruction  with  amusement — contain  much  useful  and  valuable  information 
upon  the  habits  of  animals,  und  plenty  of  adventure,  fun  arid  jollity. 

CAMPING  OUT  SERIES.  By  C.  A.  Stephens. 
6  vols.,  I2mo.  Fully  illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  Jn  box $75° 

Camping  Out.     As  recorded  by  "  K:*  " i  25 

Left  on  Labrador;  cr  The  Cruise  01  Ji?  Schooner 

Yacht  "  Curfew."  As  recorded  by  "  Wasn  ....  i  25 

Off  to  the  Geysers  ;  or.  The  Young  Yachters  in  Ice- 
land. As  recorded  by ''Wade'' I  25 

Lynx  Hunting.  From  Notes  by  the  authdr  of 

"  Camping  Out  " 125 

Fox  Hunting.    As  recorded  by  "  Raed  " •  -     125 

On  the  Amazon  ;  or,  The  Cruise  of  the"  Rambler." 
As  recorded  by  "  Wash  " i  25 


By  J.  T.  Trowbridge. 


These  stories  will  rank  among  the  best  of  Mr.  Tr  wbridg*  's  books  for  the 
young — and  he  has  written  tome  of  the  best  of  our  juvenile  1  terature. 

JACK  HAZARD  SERIES.  By  J.  T.  Trowbridge. 
6  v«<ls.,  I2mo.  Fully  Illustrated.  Cloth,  extra,  printed 
in  colors.  In  box • $75° 


W,  EYERETTE  MORTON, 


c?osdick,   pL  A., 


M152512 


& 

THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


